New Beginnings
by amg06113
Summary: They say that in life each ending is really a new beginning, so this juncture in my life is the ultimate beginning.
1. Chapter 1

They say that in life each ending is really a new beginning, so this juncture in my life is the ultimate beginning.

* * *

***BPOV***

I had been with Brian for almost seven years, I made the mistake of marrying him three years ago. Just before our anniversary, I made the decision to leave. I woke up in the morning one Saturday after one of his usual late nights out and just couldn't take it anymore. So I packed a bag and our two children and got in my suv and headed in the direction of the only place I could think to go. The only place I had ever considered home. On my way I called my best friend and a moving company. Later that day when I knew Brian would be out like always until the wee hours of the following morning, Jake would let the movers in and see that everything that was mine would be packed and sent out to me. I knew that if I didn't keep driving that I would never actually leave.

It had been so long since I had last been to Forks, Washington. When I lived there as an adolescent all I could ever do was talk about getting out, yet it was the one place I felt at peace. After graduating from high school I fled to a college on the other side of the country, sadly the city of Rochester, NY was not much different than Forks. The sun rarely came out for very long, the only true difference was that Forks was always wet with rain, and Rochester always seemed to be covered in snow. I had spent the last eleven years pretending I was in a better place when I found myself headed home. There was much that I would miss about my segregate home, but so much that I needed to get away from.

I called Charlie when I reached the out skits of Rapid City, South Dakota. I felt like I had been driving much longer than I had been. It didn't really matter to me at this point. I wasn't going back, but I was terrified about what awaited me at my destination. Charlie was extremely happy that we were coming home, but what about the others? Were they still there, my father had not told me. After my hasty departure Charlie made it a point of not bringing up things he thought would drive me farther away. I was carrying so much baggage both old and new, I didn't know what I was going to do if they were there. And what of him, what about the one person who had mattered so much to me back then?

I listened to some old cds while I drove. My two small children asleep in the back seat, had never been to Forks, and they were unaware of what was happening now. Jake called to tell me that the moving van was headed to the address I had given him, they were about a day behind me on the road. Charlie, god love him, had rented me a house not far from his in town. The older couple that had lived there had moved to Florida, their children were trying to sell the house and the real estate agent told them they should try rent to own first because of the state of the economy. He also got me a job at the police station answering the phone and filing, it wasn't much but at least it was a start. Charlie had wanted us to just come and stay with him, but his two bedroom house just wasn't big enough for all of us. I was beyond grateful to him, and though he and I had never been big on the emotional touchy feely stuff I knew that his actions right now were his way of trying to take care of his little girl.

I had taken I-90 the whole way, and was just outside of Seattle when I called Charlie to tell him that we were almost home. He had planned on meeting us at the house he had rented, but I talked him into meeting at the diner. I knew that the movers weren't far behind us, but I didn't see a point in sitting around an empty house with nothing to do for several hours. He agreed, wanting to show off his grandchildren to the whole town, starting with the regulars at the diner. Charlie was the Chief of Police in Forks, and he made it a point of knowing everyone in the town. He had used the diner as his home away from home, for both the station and is literal home. If anyone needed to find him, the diner was the place to do it. It was less formal than the station, and it kept people from bothering him at the house. I always thought he had a thing for the waitress Sue, who practically ran the place. Charlie had lived in Forks his whole life. He met my mom in Seattle, when he was in the police academy. She was a free spirit, and they fell in love the first night they met. A few months later they were married, and less than a year later I was born. However, when Charlie moved his family back to his childhood home it was not what my mom had in mind. I wasn't two years old when she packed us up and left Charlie standing on the front step wondering what he could have done to keep us there.

After she remarried several years later, I moved back to Forks. My step father was a semi pro baseball player, and it was easier for me to stay in one place for my school years than to be shuffled around to whatever local Phil was playing ball for at the time. I missed my mom, but I knew that being with Phil made her happy, and traveling around the country season to season would not make me happy. It was the start of kindergarten when I met them. They were an integral part of my life for thirteen years.

**_(Flashback)_**

Four children are sitting on carpet squares playing in a small classroom, their heads are bent towards each other as if in deep conversation. The smallest of the four, a petite girl with dark hair looked up at me as I begged my father not to leave me there.

"Please, daddy can't I go to the station with you?" I was tugging on his uniform shirt as he spoke with the teacher. She as a pretty woman, and tried to explain that it would get easier, that many children have a hard time letting go. "Please?" I tried one last time as I watched the dark haired girl walk towards us.

"I will be back at 2 o'clock Bells, I promise" Charlie looked heartbroken, but he stood firm. " Have fun, try and make some friends. Love ya kiddo."

I stuck my lower lip out in an attempt to pout, but he wasn't falling for it, and the dark haired girl was now staring.

"Hi!" she said in a sweet voice, she seemed very full of energy. She seemed to be bouncing in place.

"Hi" I said back, I tried to hide behind my long brown hair. I was horribly shy, and making friends was not easy for me.

"My name is Mary Alice, but you can call me Alice. Wanna, sit with us?" she said and motioned towards the small group of three still sitting on the floor. Before I could answer she had grabbed my hand and was dragging me towards them.

I stared out the window in the parking lot of the diner, waiting for the police cruiser to come into view before getting out of the suv. Emily my two year old was awake and talking to her doll, while her brother Joseph who was just six months was sound asleep in his car seat. I didn't have to wait long for Charlie.

* * *

This is my first attempt at a Fanfic, please be kind but if you have some critiques I am open to them.


	2. Chapter 2

**

* * *

****I do not own the rights to Twilight.**

* * *

***BPOV***

When I got out of my suv, I was enveloped by Charlie's strong arms. When I was younger it had been awkward one armed hugs, but today it seemed right to have my father embrace me after so long.

"How you doin' Bells?" his voice was rough and it seemed like he was fighting back emotions that neither of us wanted to deal with.

"Surprisingly, I am doing okay. You look good, have you been working out?" I said poking him in the bicep. His cheeks darkened with the tint of a blush.

" You know me, just spending my free time with Billy fishing. Though we did have a monster bite a couple of weeks ago. That must be where my bulging bicep came from." He said with a chuckle.

"How is Billy doing? It has been so long, I may need to stop down to La Push. Not to mention if it hadn't been for Jake, I don't know that I would have made it here." I sighed thinking of my best friend who was stuck back in New York by himself now. Jake had moved east after his 18th birthday hoping that he might find bigger and better things off of the reservation. He ended up getting working at a major fabrication facility where he could build and remodel cars. One of the things he absolutely loved to do.

We went into the diner and sat down at what was our booth when I had lived here. Charlie got two high chairs while Sue and other patrons oohed and aahed over both Emily and Joseph who were taking in their surroundings.

" I want bologna and pickles mommy" said Emily who was playing a little shy. Then she looked over at a table next to us and her eyes widened. "Mommy! Can I have French fries?!" she let out with her mouth in a half smile. When she did that sometimes it reminded me of a smile from my past. I sighed and thought about Edward. I had tried so hard not to think of him over the years.

"You can have whatever you want sweetheart" Both Charlie and Sue said to Emily at the same time. I saw Sue's cheeks color and my dad seemed unable to look up at her.

We placed our orders and Charlie showed the two children off, telling people how I had worked so hard back in NY and grumbling under his breath about his "no good soon to be ex son-in-law".

Sue took a short break when our food came up and sat down next to Charlie in the booth. It was clear that something was up between the two of them, it made me smile to see my dad happy. Even if he was pretending that nothing was going on for my sake.

"How are you doing Bella?" Sue asked in a quiet voice, it was clear that Charlie had filled her in, but she was trying to prevent any talk amongst people in the diner.

"I am doing...well, I guess okay. I made it here, and right now I'm going to take it a day at a time." I said playing with the fries that were on my plate. I looked at Joseph who was asleep in his car seat next to me. I sighed, it had been a long trip and it was catching up with me.

"They are beautiful babies Bella. At least something good came out of it." Sue said then she patted Charlie's shoulder as she got up from the booth to go back to her shift. "I'll give you a call when I get out of here." Then she turned to me giving me a hug and said "If you need anything, help getting the house set, a babysitter let me know."

I didn't know what to say, I hadn't been used to people being so kind to me, other than Jake and Charlie. I whispered back to her "Thank you Sue, you don't know how much that means to me."

***CPOV***

I took one look at Bella when she got out of her vehicle, I was glad that she had a decent one. I can remember the truck that Billy sold her when she got her license. I used to dread her going anywhere in it. When I looked at her, I saw the stress. I couldn't believe that my little girl, my Bells had carried the burden she did alone for so long. I had met the jerk once, and my police senses told me something wasn't right. But I couldn't put my finger on it so I knew she wouldn't listen.

Walking toward her and my grand kids I thought of the way she looked when ever she was waiting for the Cullen boy to get over himself and look at her the way he looked at the rest of the female population at Forks High School. I was always glad that he didn't see her as more than just a friend. I was terrified that my girl would get hurt. But now, knowing the family like I do, and knowing what Bella had gone through alone, because she had to get out from the shadow of everyone else, I wish he had taken an interest. Maybe then she wouldn't have felt the need to travel so far away for school and met _him. _

The police officer in me wanted to have him picked up and thrown in jail, the father in me...well the father in me wanted the man dead for hurting my baby.

I smiled at Bella, and lead her into the diner. My girl was home with her two babies, and I would be able to look after them from now on. Sue was the only person I had filled in on what had happened, and why Bella was coming home. She had been a strong single mother when her husband passed a way while Bella was in high school. Harry had died of a heart attack, so there was really no comparison. I will never forget the conversation that night after Bella had called, I called Sue and she came by after her shift at the diner. I yelled I threatened to track him down, I wanted to do things to him that would cost me my badge and many years in jail. Sue true to the person she is managed to calm me down. "It would be no good for her and the children" she told me and she was right.

As we sat in the booth eating a dinner Bella clearly didn't have the appetite for I looked the my two grandchildren and my grown up daughter and felt that she needed someone more than me looking after her. I had an idea, but I knew she wouldn't go for it and Sue would be after me for interfering. I would have to do it alone.

* * *

Sorry this is so short, the next chapter will be longer, and I am getting to Bella seeing you know who...please review. I have a lot of ideas for what I want to happen with them.


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

Twilight and the characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.

* * *

***BPOV***

We had been in Forks a week, I was avoiding unpacking too much. Part of me was afraid that something would happen and we wouldn't be staying. Staring at a box in the living room was where Charlie and Sue found me when they came by the house.

Charlie cleared his throat and Sue came up and hugged me. "It takes time Bella, but don't dwell on the past. You have to let yourself live. "She whispered quietly in my ear. I patted her hand as a sign of thanks and understanding.

"So I think you should let Sue take you shopping in town to get some supplies for the house, and a few things for yourself. I am going to start unpacking you and when you get back we will make a list of what I need to get from the hardware store." Charlie said in a way that made me feel like I should take his suggestion and do it. I nodded and went to get my purse.

"Em's been a sleep for about half an hour and I just put Joey down." I told Charlie. My eyes were still on the box that I had been sitting in front of when they came in. I knew what was in the box, but I couldn't bring myself to open it and take anything out.

I let Sue drive me into town, she insisted that we start out a small clothing boutique and promised a trip to either Seattle or Port Angeles soon to go to an actual mall. I had never been big on shopping so I didn't really care. The shop she took me into was new; it looked like something that should be in a major city. Everything looked like it would be very expensive and one of a kind. I didn't know why Sue was bringing me here, but maybe getting a new outfit that was out of my budget would make me feel a little better.

I scanned through the racks, and Sue stayed close. I think she was trying to either protect me, or read my body language. I wondered what or how much Charlie had told Sue. There were voices coming from the back of the store, it appeared that there was a small dressing room just past the register. I found a couple of pairs of pants and some tops that I would be able to wear while working at the Police Station. I headed to the dressing room and found that there were three rooms and one was being used. I told Sue I would be trying the clothes on, and pulled the curtain close. I could hear the voices of two women in the dressing room next to me. It had been a while since I had talked to anyone from Forks, but I thought I knew at least one of the voices. I just couldn't place it.

The curtain to the dressing room didn't close all the way, and when Sue came back to check on my progress I didn't hear her approach but I heard the gasp as she caught my reflection in the mirror that hung on the wall. My body went rigid, and I turned to see Sue standing with her mouth wide open.

"Oh sweetie…oh God Bella, your father said but I didn't understand." Sue stammered, unsure of what to actually say. And then two things happened that I was definitely not prepared for.

* * *

Two chapters in one night...I surprised even myself. Working on the next one...let me know how it is going.


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

I heard the familiar voice stop talking for a moment and when it started again, it was by saying my name. "Bella?!"

A flood of emotions came over me; I wanted to crawl into a hole. Anything to not have anyone else see what I had so carefully hidden for so long. Charlie had an idea based on what I had told him, but he had not actually seen the scars. Why did this have to happen? Why here, now? I braced myself for impact.

The curtain furled around Sue and I as a small pixie like woman yelled my name out loud in disbelief. "BELLA SWAN! Oh my goooood! What are you doing here?!" The pixie attacked me wrapping me in a tight hug. I hugged her back, and as I did I turned us both so that my back was to the solid wall and not the mirror anymore. I could see the hurt in Sue's eyes, I could imagine the shortened version that Charlie had given her.

"Hey Alice," I squeezed her back, wincing a bit. "How are you? What are you doing here? Why don't I get dressed and then we can catch up with each other?" I tried to get it out as quick as I could, remembering how Alice could monopolize a conversation if you weren't as quick as her some times.

"I should be asking you those questions, and you better believe it. I will let Rose know you are here, and we're going for coffee! And I am not taking no for an answer!" Alice was already bouncing away from the dressing room as she spoke. "I see you out front, oh and anything you like is yours. A welcome home gift from Rose and me!"

I looked at Sue after I pulled my shirt back over my head, "Um, so I guess you want to talk about…" I didn't get to finish before you raised her hand to me. "When you are ready Bella, I will be here for you. I will not pry, it isn't my business. But I will always be here for you."

Sue and I headed back towards the front of the store, and behind the counter where the register was stood Alice in all her pixie like glory tinkering with her phone and Rose who was still the most beautiful creature to grace the town of Forks. They smiled at me when I approached the register. I had decided on a couple of the items I had brought with me to the dressing room. "Put your wallet away, I refuse to take any money from you!" Rose said as she came around the counter to hug me. Though, we had been friends in school, Rose and I were never as close as she and Alice were, or Alice and I. But when Rose embraced me for the hug, it was as if she could read me and my stance.

"Actually I was treating Bella; she is getting a fresh start here. We have a few other errands to run while Charlie is unpacking her and babysitting the little ones at the house. Maybe you three should meet up after supper." Sue said to Alice as she opened her purse. Alice smiled at her and replied in a manner that could make anyone do what she wanted. "Sue, I will not take your money. We have never gotten to take Bella shopping. So Rose and I will treat her this time, and I think we will take a look at what else we have. I mean really Bella; we have got to work on your style." She gave a scrutinizing look at the items on the counter.

I wrote down my address for Alice before we left. And the two of them promised to see me later. As I waved good bye my heart was heavy. Part of me was excited about seeing the two of them, knowing that they were still in town and that created the hope that Edward might still be in town. Then there was the little voice that wanted to squash that hope, because if he was still here he was sure to have married someone by now. It was such a long time. But the hope was there, and I am sure that Alice would fill me in when I saw her again.

***APOV***

I can't believe that Bella is back, oh man wait until I tell Edward! I ran from the dressing room find Rose working in the office at the computer. "Guess who is in the dressing room as we speak?" I asked her as I burst through the door.

"Some amazingly fake celebrity who is doing a movie in Seattle or up in Vancouver?" Rose was unimpressed with some of the clients we had, our shop started out small and expanded to online sales and because of one actress coming into town to get away from her set while filming up in Vancouver word about us spread like wildfire. Sometimes it seemed like that was all we got, actors or actresses that came in talking about how it was nice to shop where people didn't know who they were. Rose informed some of them that she did know who they were, she just didn't feel their skill on the movie screen was all that great and so she wasn't going to bother making a big deal out of them being in the shop. "I don't make a big deal about the town's chief of medicine's wife coming in here, why should I make a big deal about you?" Rose always made it sound like Esme was someone of great importance, when she was really, well just our mom. But someone like Angelina didn't know that. The next thing we knew we were listed in a Vanity Fair article about how she "could shop there and be treated like anyone else who might walk in, even the wife of the chief of medicine". Rose and I laughed when the magazine arrived signed and wishing us the best.

"No, come on take a serious guess. Oh never mind you will never guess. Bella's here. She is in our dressing room trying on clothes as we speak. I think she is here with Sue Clearwater. Hey isn't her dad dating Sue?" I was getting annoyed that Rose wasn't listening to me. And then all of a sudden her eyes widened.

"Wait a minute; did you just say that Bella is here?" Rose jumped out of the chair and was ready to head to the dressing room. I grabbed her arm and dragged her back in the office. "She'll be out in a minute, before you go attacking her in the dressing room like I did. I mean really that is my job. Also, I think something is up, when I hugged her; the way she responded seemed off. I'm not sure." Rose nodded in understanding. "Do you think I should let Edward know she is back in town?" I remembered how my brother reacted to her leaving Forks, how eager she was to get out of town, as her best friend I knew how much she cared about him and I always wanted to knock some sense into him and make him realize that he was overlooking the best thing in his life. The two of them were closer to each other than she and I had been, and she was my best friend since kindergarten.

Rose raised an eyebrow, "Are you going to let him know?" She walked out of the office and stood by the register, as I followed her I pulled out my phone and send a text message to my brother.

_Are you sitting down?_

_**No I am about to walk into a patient's room, why do I need to sit down?**_

_I have something to tell you, and I don't want you to fall over._

_**Okay, well this patient is kind of a priority right now, so either tell and get it over with, or if you really need to have the tension hanging for the dramatic effect then tell me later when I get home. **_

_Um…never mind, I will tell you later._

_**Wait a minute; this was so important a moment ago that I needed to be sitting down for you to tell me. And now you are going to tell me later. Alice just get it off your chest, because we both know that you are going to be driving everyone around you nuts until you get to tell me. **_

_Um she just came out of the dressing room, so I will have to wait to tell you. Laters!_

_**What do you mean she? Who is she?**_

_**Alice? **_

_**Okay, avoid me now. I will be with a patient for the next few minutes; I get off my shift in about two hours. I will see you at home.**_

* * *

Eward is introduced...more to come obviously. Please review.


	5. Chapter 5

**

* * *

**

Stephenie Meyer owns the rights to Twilight

* * *

***EPOV***

Alice was acting weird and now I was going to be over analyzing her message to me for the next few hours. I hated when they had celebrities in the shop, Alice always ended up sending me a message or calling me and do the whole 20 questions thing about whoever it was that had come in that day.

I walked into the patient's room that I had been standing outside of while my sister who was more of a pain than anything else sent me today's round of 20 questions.

"Doctor Cullen, will you sign my cast?" I looked to my 8 year old patient with her long brunette curls, and chocolate brown eyes and my thoughts were drawn to Bella. I hated when I had patients that reminded me of her. It had been so many years, so many and still I couldn't let her go. Sadly that was the irony of things, because I had let her go instead of telling her to stay. I smiled at the tiny look alike and took the marker she offered me. I signed my name and drew a smiley face next to it.

"How is my favorite patient doing today?" I asked that of all my patients, I loved working in pediatrics though at times it could be very hard to watch a sick child not get well. But each time I had a patient who looked like Bella I found myself spending more time with them than others. The little girl smiled at me and blushed. "I'm okay. When do I get to go home? Mom said that Parker came by with a card for me."

"How does tomorrow morning sound to you?" I said looking at her chart and seeing that everything looked well enough. "Who is Parker? Oh wait your mom and dad said you were playing with a friend when you fell out of the tree. Is that who Parker is?" I didn't need a verbal answer from her, but she nodded anyways. I chuckled, "Don't worry kiddo; I am sure the card will be there, and by the time you get home he will be there with another card as well."

I remembered every time Bella got hurt, I did the same thing. Usually I had been with her when it happened so I felt responsible for not protecting her. I sat with Abbey for almost an hour playing a game of chess with her. As we were finishing the game, her parents came in the room followed by another woman and young boy who looked to be 8 or 9 years old. I assumed this was Parker. He ran right to her side and was looking at the cast. "Abbey are you okay? Does it hurt? Can I sign your cast? When are you going home?" The concern in the young boy's voice was apparent. I spoke with Abbey's parents and updated them, and then exited the room. I headed to my office to check my messages and fill out the paper work for the day. I sat behind my desk and looked at the pictures on my filing cabinet most of them were of my family, with a few of friends and me. In the center was my favorite picture, it was of the group of us getting ready to go to the prom. We stood outside my parent's home, my brother Emmett stood with his girlfriend Rose, Alice my sister stood with Jasper who was Rose's twin and between the four of them were Bella and I. We had both opted to go solo to the prom. I wanted to ask her so many times to be my date, but I was so afraid she would tell me no.

_(Flashback)_

"Edward!" Bella yelled my name from up in the spare bedroom "Edward! Make her stop!" I went down the hall from my room to where Rose and Alice were helping Bella get ready. I hadn't finished getting ready but I felt the need to protect Bella from the two of them and their torture. I knocked on the door it was open enough that I could see in before entering. The three of them were dressed so I pushed the door open and entered. "Edward!" she ran into me and sounded like she was crying. I wrapped my arms around her and breathed in her scent. I wanted to hold her like this for the rest of the night, well minus the crying. "Hey, you okay? What were you two doing to her?" I asked hoping someone would answer me. Bella pulled away, and I finally got a look at her. She was amazing. My heart was exploding from my chest, hammering away in response to her beauty that she didn't know she had. Without removing my eyes from her I told Rose and Alice to ease up and that they had about 15 minutes to finish because we would be leaving soon. Twenty minutes after that we took that picture, and even then my eyes were only for Bella. She just never looked at me.

My phone buzzing on my desk brought me back from the day dream about a past that I was never going to be able to change. Alice again, I looked at the time, damn I should have been home by now, how long had I been sitting and thinking about the past?

"Yes Mary Alice?" I rarely called her by her first name unless I was truly annoyed with her. "What is so important that you are calling me while I am still at the hospital?"

"Are you on your way home?" Her voice sounded rushed.

"I am about to leave my office, why?" I was feeling impatient that she had interrupted my quiet time alone.

"Um, do you have plans for tonight? Rose and I are taking a friend out to Club 7 tonight. Do you want to meet us for a drink or something?" Alice rarely asked me to go anywhere because of my rotations at the hospital, so having her ask made me suspicious.

"Alice if you are trying to set me up with some new pet of yours? Because I am tired of telling you I am not interested." I said as I was heading to the elevator and smiling while recalling the many attempts Alice and Rose had made at setting me up since high school.

* * *

I'm trying to decide if I want to have Edward and Bella meet up right away, or not. I have an situation ready for them coming up.


	6. Chapter 6

* * *

Stephie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

Sue and I finished up at Sunsets West Co-op, buying enough items to stock the cupboards and refrigerator. On the drive back to the house, I was staring out the passenger side window deep in thought about what I would say to Sue about what she had seen. I was extremely uncomfortable, and that told me that I had to just tell her. Because it was one thing for Charlie to be aware of things but it was another for him to actually have the visual like Sue had just gotten.

I broke the silence, "Charlie doesn't know how bad it is," I could feel the tears starting to sting my eyes as I thought about the night the finally was enough. "I mean he knows, but at the same time, he doesn't. I was afraid he would go back to New York and go after him." The tears began to fall.

"I told you when you are ready. If you aren't ready Bella, you don't have to tell me anything." Sue said as almost a whisper. She was staring out the window at the road ahead of us. I shook my head.

"No Sue, I need to tell someone. Even Jake doesn't know. I guess he had an idea, but he never came out and said anything. I don't know what hurt more, taking the beatings or not feeling like I could do anything about them. "The tears were falling with no end in sight. "He never touched the children; I would have killed him if he had. But for whatever reason the switch would flip with me and he would go from a great guy that everyone liked and wanted to be around to getting mad and taking it out on me." I wiped the stream of tears from my cheeks, from the corner of my eye I could see that Sue was beginning to tear up. She slowed the car down, and pulled over to the side of the road. I was glad because I didn't want to have this conversation at the house. I could still see Charlie hopping a plane and doing something we would all regret.

"The first time, I didn't see it coming. We had been out with friends, I had dressed up for the evening he had complimented me on it when he first saw me. But after a couple of hours he apparently felt that every guy in the place was looking at me like they wanted to take me home. He had one too many and before I knew it he was arguing with me outside when I told him he was wrong, and that I wasn't going anywhere with anyone else he pulled my hair and told me I better remember that . When he let go, he had a clump of my hair in his hand." My body involuntarily shook at the memory.

"Afterward I was getting ready to leave him and he begged me to stay. He promised it would never happen again. I should have known better. But it did happen again. And he made sure never to leave a mark where anyone could see it. You are the first to actually set eyes on his handy work." The tears had stopped and my knuckles were white from me clenching my fists while telling her about the abusive relationship I had left.

"The evening before I left with the kids, he was yelling about work. And I was trying to just listen and keep Emily busy and out of his way. Joey was asleep in the crib, and all of a sudden Em went up to him and said "just calm down daddy" I don't know where she heard the phrase or why she felt to say it, and I saw the look in his eye that gets just before he lashes out. I picked her up and walked out of the room and took her to her room and put up her gate. He followed me up after a minute and cornered me in the hallway. He confronted me saying I was teaching her to be a nasty bitch just like me, and then he pushed me into the wall. He grabbed my arm and twisted me around so that I was facing the wall. He kept twisting and my cry from it caused Emily to approach her gate. She basically watched him use one arm to hold me against the wall and punch me in the back and kick my legs above the knees until I couldn't hold myself up. I slumped to the floor and he walked into our bedroom and got changed then went out, calling one of his buddies on the way down the stairs. It took me almost an hour before I could stand up and go to comfort Em who was sobbing from the sight of him beating me. She cried, I cried and we fell asleep in the rocking chair I had in her room. When I woke around 11 o'clock I put her in bed and began to pack a couple of bags. I knew I would have until closing time at the bar to get some things together. I heard him pull in around 3 in the morning, and then he fell came in and fell asleep. I rested for a couple of hours and when the sun began to come up I carried the bags down to the car. Then I carried Emily down, and finally Joey in his car seat. Brian slept through the whole thing. By 6:30 in the morning we were on the road headed out of the city. Jake had agreed to move me out, glad that I had finally left."

I sighed feeling like I had let it all out, and the world had not crashed around me. Sue just looked at me, and then she reached over pushed a strand of hair off my face, and said "We are here to make sure that it never happens again. And those babies are young enough to not remember it as they get older. I won't say anything to Charlie if you don't want me to, but I do think you need to talk to someone else. Promise me you will think about it." And then she hugged me.

We continued down the road back to the house, and just as we pulled in the driveway my phone buzzed. I looked down at the number and realized it was Alice. I debated letting it go to voicemail. But thought better of it, she had my number and she would continue to call until I answered, or she would just show up at the door. I flipped the phone open, "Hi Alice, I thought you would have called hours ago." I laughed trying to let go of some of the tension that Sue and I still had hanging in the car.

"Oh please, look unload your things, have dinner with your family and then Rose and I are taking you out to Club 7 in Port Angeles. I am not taking no for an answer, and I am bringing you something to wear. We will see you at 7 o'clock. I can't wait to catch up." Alice sounded excited; I could almost imagine her bouncing around where ever she was.

"Okay, I will see you in a few hours." I could tell there was no point in telling her no, or trying to cancel on her. And besides, Sue had volunteered her and Charlie to babysit for a few hours. We got out of the car and brought the bags inside. I was floored by how much Charlie had gotten done in the amount of time we had been gone. He arranged the furniture, and unpacked a ton of boxes. He had feed Emily lunch, and was now giving Joey a bottle while she played with her Fisher Price doll house on the floor and was singing along with the Sleeping Beauty movie Charlie had on TV. Sue filled Charlie in on the places we had gone and some of the people we had seen. Then she told him that since he had done a great job with the kids this afternoon that the two of them were going to babysit for me for a few hours so that I could go out with Alice Hale and Rosalie Cullen. At the telling of the names I stopped and turned to Sue, she make face that confirmed what I now realized. My two friends had gotten married while I was gone, like me, and like I had done without them, they did it without me there. I wanted to cry, but there were no tears left.

I hadn't worn my ring since I had left that morning, hard to believe it had only been a week and a half. Since Jake's girlfriend was a lawyer she would be handling the divorce. Once I had gotten to safely out of Rochester, I took pictures of the bruises as best I could. I had only to send them to Leah via email and she would be putting a rush on things because of the fact that the lives of me and my children were at risk. She had told me that a judge friend was hard on men that beat their wives and he would probably end up getting the case. I trusted her. I looked around the living room, Charlie had done a great job, and there were pictures up and some of my knick knacks. I suddenly felt like I was home.

I made dinner for all of us; steaks and potatoes with some mixed vegetables. Charlie was in heaven claiming that he hadn't eaten so well outside of the diner since I had left. I gave Emily her bath and got her ready for bed. Sue gave Joey a bath, claiming she had always loved the sweet smell whenever she had used the baby wash on Leah and Seth as babies. After Charlie gave him another bottle Joey was asleep and Emily had been out for at least 30 minutes. It was shortly after that when there was a knock on the door.

* * *

Okay so now we know what happened that made her leave...and she told Sue, now what happens when they go to Club 7?


	7. Chapter 7

**

* * *

**Stephenie Meyer owns the rights to Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

"Alice, I cannot wear this." I held up what she had brought for me, it was what looked like a halter top but it didn't tie at the neck, it was connected and it bunched a little to show off part of a woman's back. She also had a pair of dark pants that were meant to hug every curve. "Alice, seriously I am not wearing this."

She began to pout; Rose was looking around my bedroom and began poking through the closet. "Well there is nothing in here that you are wearing to Club 7 with us. So put it on and let's get going, or I am doing your hair and makeup as well." Rose said not even looking at me. "Jasper and Emmett are meeting us there, so get a move on girl."

My heart began to pound. "Jasper and Emmett are coming as well; I mean I don't want to interfere with a night out that you four have planned. Really, its okay we can meet for lunch sometime and catch up." I was stammering, mostly out of the fear that the topic of Edward would come up, what if he was married too. There were so many possibilities that ran through my mind.

The two of the yelled at the same time "Not a chance!" Alice bounced over to me and hugged me tight, "You girl are coming with us! Jasper and Emmett can't wait to see you! They wanted to come with us to get you. Rose had to threaten Emmett's car with engine harm if they didn't let us come and get you prepared and have a little girl time first." She released me and turned me toward Rose, who was standing with a hand on her hip, even mad she was extremely beautiful. "You are going, you are wearing the clothes we picked out for you, and you are going to have a good time tonight. Do you understand?"

I swallowed. Rose had a way to make you feel like she could kick your ass if you didn't do what she wanted. It was funny how she ended up with Emmett, the guy reminded me a grizzly bear when we were in high school, I could only imagine him now. And the grizzle married, the enforcer, scary thought.

"Alright, give me the clothes and get out of my room so I can get changed. Actually no, stay here I'll go change in the bathroom." As I walked toward the door out of the room I stopped at my closet and found a tailored denim jacket that I had worn once or twice before to cover dressier tank tops.

"What are you doing? No altering the wardrobe!" Alice yelled as I pulled it off the hanger.

"I'm going to need something if it is cold at all. At least it isn't a parka." I said as I walked out the door. I changed quickly in the bathroom and pulled my hair up into a messy ponytail and put on a small amount of makeup, just enough that they would notice I had tried.

I exited the bathroom and headed back into the bedroom. "Well?" I asked spinning around.

"You'll do." The two said in unison, and before I knew it they were dragging me down the stairs. Charlie and Sue were making popcorn and planning to watch a movie from my vast collection.

"Call me if you need me to come back sooner. We won't be very late." I didn't know what to tell Charlie and Sue. "Go have fun, we will see you later." Sue said sounding like the mom I never really had.

As we drove from Forks to Port Angeles I waited for the grilling, "Why are you back? What's going on?" but it appeared to not be coming. Alice and Rose rambled on about their shop, and how it was in a Vanity Fair article, I think Rose even said the name Angelina. I told them how great it was that they had finally been able to combine their skills and turn it into a really good business. Alice was the shopper; she had an eye for fashion that could rival any major designer. She used to love playing life size Barbie's with us when we were in school. Rose, should have been a supermodel, but she had a knack for sales. In school she could have sold snow to an Eskimo. The two of them and hated driving all the way to Port Angeles or Seattle to shop and because of Alice's skill with the stock market they were able to come up with the full amount for buying the location for their shop and all the overhead costs. Alice decided what they would sell and Rose managed to sell it, they were the perfect partners for the business.

At the point when I finally began to relax in the back of Rose's red 2010 Torch Red Shelby Mustang, an early gift from Emmett for their anniversary was when it happened. Alice turned to me and said, "Okay spill it girl. What's up with you? Why after so long are you home, where is the father to those two beautiful children that we saw pictures of all over the house? You are here alone, in a house alone. You aren't wearing a ring, so clearly you are single. So what happened?"

"Breath Alice, and why don't we get some drinks in her before we start the interrogation. It might make her talk about the rock she disappeared under for so long." Rose said in a sweet voice, it was one that made me very nervous. I was going to have to make sure that I didn't drink anything that had even the slightest bit of alcohol in it so that my tongue didn't betray me. It would be easier to just say things didn't work out with him than to actually tell them the whole gory details. The way that Rose drove it took just about an hour to get to Port Angeles, I had almost forgotten that Alice, Emmett, and Edward all drove dangerously fast, and so much time with them must have rubbed off on Rose.

We arrived at 7 Cedars Casino which housed Club 7, and I could feel my hands shaking. I was nervous about telling them anything, and then there was the fact that Jasper and Emmett were waiting for us inside. I was about to be the fifth wheel and endure the interrogation to end all interrogations. As we walked into the club and headed toward a section off to the side, away from the crowded bar but close to the stage and dance floor. Alice told me that some days they have bands booked to play, and on other nights they have DJs come in. She continued to babble while Rose led the way through the club. Suddenly the crowd parted a bit and I could see where Emmett and Jasper were sitting, it was a private lounge area, and as we got closer I saw that the two of them were not alone. They were far from alone; sitting next to Emmett on his right side was… Edward.

A lump the size of a baseball formed in my throat, and I stopped moving. Neither Alice nor Rose noticed that I was no longer with them. I saw the guys look up and watch the two of them approach. The crowd around where they were sitting shifted again, and suddenly as if he sensed me Edward looked in my direction and locked eyes with me. My heart stopped. Alice and Rose turned to look at me, and I found that my feet were working again only I was going slowly in reverse. Edward stood up said something to Alice, that I couldn't hear that didn't appear to be good. He looked at me again; I must have looked like a deer in headlights. I don't think I had taken a breath since seeing him. Emmett and Jasper caught on to what was going on. I knew it would take all of four or five steps for Edward to get to me, what I didn't expect was that Emmett would beat everyone and reach me before my brain could process that I needed to turn and run away.

"BELLA!" Emmett yelled as he wrapped his arms around me and lifted me up in a giant bear hug. "When did you get back into town? Rose and Alice said they had a surprise but they didn't say it was you!" He squeezed me as tight as an actual grizzly bear would, and in his attempt to hug me like he always used to he managed to put serious pressure on my beaten back. I cried out but it was clear that no one heard me over the noise in the club. I was glad for that. He set me down and I could see how tall and extremely muscular he had gotten over the years.

Jasper approach and seemed cautious, "Bella. May I?" and he raised his arms for a hug. I nodded and he embraced me. "We've missed you so much. Some more than others, but we can discuss that another time. It is great to see you." He smiled and stepped back putting his arm around Alice's shoulder. Emmett stood with his arm around Rose as well. Edward just stared.

"Hi." I said looking at Edward. He had grown a little bit since I had last seen him, and from what I could tell he was more muscular. Other than that he still had the same messy bronze hair, clearly he had been running his hands through his hair. "Hi." He said looking at me it appeared that he was looking me over and deciding what to do next. I was frozen in place, half of me wanted to run and hide, the other half of me wanted to run into my old friends arms and feel as safe as I used to. He made the move toward me, wrapping his arms around me and squeezing me almost as tight as Emmett. I hugged him back breathing in his scent. That too was the same as I remember, musk and soap and the hint of something I couldn't quite put my finger on. At that moment I thought I heard him inhale deeply and then as he exhaled he said in almost a whisper "Is it really you, or am I dreaming right now?"

* * *

Edwards POV is coming up promise. Thank you to all who are reading, please review. I could use your thoughts on how it is going.


	8. Chapter 8

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns all the rights to Twilight

* * *

***EPOV***

"Alice will you just tell me what is going on, please?" I hissed into the phone. I was getting more than a little bit pissed at my sister; she was insisting that I join them at Club 7. And even went as far as having Emmett and Jasper waiting for me when I got home to take me down there. "Dude, just get ready to go out for a little while tonight. You can even drive so that whenever you want to leave you can and the girls can take us home." Emmett said sounding just as irritated, Rose and Alice must have been bugging him and Jasper most of the day as well.

"Edward, I have the surprise of a lifetime for you. So just please meet us there at 8:30PM. Don't make Rose tell Emmett to drag you there against your will. It won't be pretty." She sounded smug "You will thank me later. I swear. I promise. Cross my heart." I sighed there was no winning with her. So I hung up went up to my room, grabbed the first thing I could find in the closet and changed. I couldn't believe that I was doing this, at least Emmett had a point, if I drove him and Jasper I could leave whenever I felt like it and the girls would take them home.

I pushed the speedometer on my Volvo S40 to the point that made everything around it seem a blur. I had spent so much time thinking about Bella lately that I could use a night out. Last night I had a dream about her lying in my arms her chestnut hair spread across the pillow the scent of strawberries radiating off of it from her shampoo. I could feel the silkiness of her skin against me and it was heaven to me. Just as I was about to brush a strand of her hair off her face and behind her ear telling her that I loved her, the alarm went off and she was gone. The night before I had a dream where she was laughing. I couldn't see her, we were walking on the trail toward _our_ meadow and all around me was the sound of her laughter, I was calling her name and running but I couldn't find her. I woke up in the middle of the night went down to my father's office and pour myself a stiff drink. Normally I didn't like the taste of whiskey, and Carlisle only ever used it for when he had meeting with important "clients" or people offering money to the hospital. The alcohol did nothing for me, but it allowed me to go back to a dreamless sleep. I was thankful for that because I could have sworn that on my way through town, I had seen Bella at a part with two very small children. It made no sense to me; she lived thousands of miles away.

She was married, I had seen them together. I didn't like him, though I had never met him. I had told only Emmett at the time when I called from the conference in New York. Four years ago, I was asked to attend a pediatrics conference that would be held in Rochester, at a new facility that had just been finished. It was a major department, not just a wing but a whole building added on to a major hospital dedicated to pediatrics in all forms. While I was there, I took the chance on looking up Bella's address. I pulled into the complex where her town house was located, and as I pulled around looking for the number, I saw her on the front step crying. My heart leapt from my chest; there she was as always needing my protection, my comfort. And then the door to the town house opened and out walked a tall man who grabbed her shoulder and turned her around, he spoke to her and while he did she seemed almost pained. He hugged her, and then kissed her. The next thing I knew they were going inside. I drove back out of the complex and to my hotel. I called Emmett, and after the conference left without seeing her again. But for the next four years she hunted my dreams and day dreams. It took her leaving for me to realize how much I truly loved her, and was such a fool for letting her go.

We arrived at the casino where the club was located a little ahead of schedule and decided to find a place to sit for the evening and order drinks. We'd been sitting there for about twenty minutes when Emmett caught sight of Rose he pointed out the fact that the girls were headed our way. And then I saw her, a vision, and a dream. She couldn't be real, there was no way. The crowd in front of me shifted and she was gone, but then it shifted again and there she was again. My heart stopped, I couldn't find my voice. I felt like the room was spinning. Bella looked in shock as well. She looked as if she was about to turn and run. Hadn't Alice told her I would be here? Was she scheming? What had Alice done!?

The three of us stood up, it looked like Bella was frozen in place. I went to Alice and demanded to know what was going on. "Is this a joke? Alice what is going on?!" I calculated that it would take all of four or five steps for me to get to her wrap my arms around her and kiss her like I so badly had wanted to for so many years. The alcohol I had consumed was taking affect much quicker than I would have thought. But what I didn't expect was that Emmett would beat me to her.

"BELLA!" Emmett yelled as he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up in a giant bear hug. "When did you get back into town? Rose and Alice said they had a surprise but they didn't say it was you!" He squeezed her so tight I swear I heard he cry out but it was clear that no one else had heard it over the noise in the club. I was curious, Emmett hugged tight, but he would never to it so tight it hurt someone.

Jasper's approach seemed to be cautious, "Bella. May I?" and he raised his arms for a hug. She nodded. "We've missed you so much. Some more than others, but we can discuss that another time. It is great to see you." He smiled and stepped back putting his arm around Alice's shoulder. Emmett stood with his arm around Rose as well. I just stared.

"Hi." She said looking at me through her thick eyelashes. She was as beautiful as I had recalled, as I dreamed. Her eyes were like molten chocolate, so warm and welcoming. I wanted to stare into them for hours, days. I wanted to put my arms around her and just hold her. "Hi." I said looking at her trying to decide what to do next. I was frozen in place, half of me wanted to run and hide, the other half of me wanted to run into my old friends arms and make her feel as safe as I used to. I finally made the move toward her, wrapping my arms around her and squeezing almost as tight as Emmett. She hugged me back at that moment I thought I heard her inhale deeply as if she was taking in my scent. My body responded to her, and I did the same thing and then as I exhaled I said in almost a whisper "Is it really you, or am I dreaming right now?"

I didn't want to let her go for fear that I was dreaming. At that moment **_Far Away_** by _**Nickelback**_ came on, I pulled her away from the others saying "Before you are attacked by them again, why don't we let you settle first." She must have thought I meant to led her outside, or away from the others some place other than the dance floor. I pulled her close to me and wanted to hold her like this. My heart was hammering away in my chest. Here she was out of my dreams, and actually in my arms. The song continued to play and I found myself singing it quietly "**This time, This place Misused, Mistakes Too long, Too late Who was I to make you wait Just one chance Just one breath Just in case there's just one left 'Cause you know, you know, you know That I love you I have loved you all along And I miss you Been far away for far too long I keep dreaming you'll be with me and you'll never go Stop breathing if I don't see you anymore On my knees, I'll ask Last chance for one last dance 'Cause with you, I'd withstand All of hell to hold your hand I'd give it all I'd give for us Give anything but I won't give up 'Cause you know, you know, you know So far away Been far away for far too long So far away Been far away for far too long But you know, you know, you know I wanted I wanted you to stay 'Cause I needed I need to hear you say That I love you I have loved you all along And I forgive you For being away for far too long So keep breathing 'Cause I'm not leaving you anymore Believe it Hold on to me and, never let me go Keep breathing 'Cause I'm not leaving you anymore Believe it Hold on to me and, never let me go Keep breathing Hold on to me and, never let me go Keep breathing Hold on to me and, never let me go**" I sang and held her close. I could only hope that she would one day feel the same way. I looked down at her, her head resting on my shoulder. It took everything not to kiss her lips that were mere inches from mine now. She looked up at me and I melted. "Bella…" it came out as more of a breath and I was drawn to her. So many times I wanted to feel her lips on mine, and now here was my chance. "Edward…" she whispered my name and I came undone. I brought my hand to her chin cupping it and lifted her face toward mine and then claimed her lips.

My head screamed that it was wrong, I knew she was married. But in this moment she was in _my_ arms, saying _my_ name, she was _my_ Bella and I just couldn't wonder any longer what it would be like to kiss her.

* * *

This encounter isn't over yet, but here is Edward's take on it. I heard **Far Away** playing on the TV while I was working on BPOV for the previous chapter. It just seemed to fit. Please review and let me know.


	9. Chapter 9

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

Edward held me close to him, he cupped my chin with his hand and then he did what I had waited for, waited years for. He kissed me. My body melted, I had dreamed of this moment, but I had never imagined it would be so good. I put my hands on his chest and pushed away. The kiss broke; Edward looked pained that it was over. He just stared at me for a few moments.

The song that came on next sent me back in time to when the man before me was my best friend and I had longed for him to not want me as his best friend but his girlfriend. I hated that I knew him so well, that from kindergarten we had been inseparable. We met the first day of kindergarten because of Alice, my best girl friend. She dragged me over to where they were sitting. At the time Emmett wasn't there, he was a year older, I would eventually meet him.

My head was wheeling; all I could hear was my heart racing in my chest, and the song. Damn this music! Damn Taylor Swift! "If you could see that I'm the one who understands you. Been here all along, so why can't you see? You belong with me…"

(_**Flashback)**_

"Edward, I really don't know what you are doing with Tanya? I mean she is a nasty bitch who has slept with more guys then you have fingers and toes!" I didn't like her and I wasn't going to lie to him and pretend that I did. He would notice it anyways.

"Bella! Why do you insist on hating her? I mean I am with her; she is a part of my life. Deal with it!" Edward was pissed because I wasn't helping. I wasn't telling him that it would be okay, that she wasn't messing around with Mike Newton. But like I said, I wasn't going to lie to him.

"Deal with it? Deal with it? You know what you can just get the hell out of my room, and while you're at it, my house and my life. Why don't you deal with that!?" I yelled so angry at him. He turned and slammed the door to my bedroom behind him, then the front door. I wanted to cry, to scream, for him to actually look at me. He always fawned himself over these girls that just used him for his reputation. For his family's money, for what they thought he would give them. And they all hated that I was a part of the package. And I was tired of always being the other woman, but the irony of it is that I would never actually be his. I was the buddy, the friend. And I needed to get the hell out of this town and out from his shadow.

The group of us has been together for so long, it was hard to imagine that we wouldn't always be that way. But I had a secret that they would all find out about soon enough. We had sent out applications to all the same schools. Alice, Jasper, Rose, Edward and I, only I can across one additional school. It was a long shot, and I am sure Charlie would give me trouble for wanting to go so far away. But today not only did I get my acceptance letter from them; they offered me a full scholarship. That Charlie couldn't argue with.

We stood around at the graduation party; everyone assumed we would all be going to school together in the fall. Edward was talking to Jasper about the soccer team that they would both be on, and then Edward turned to me and commented on how Alice and I would be sitting together at every game cheering them on.

In that moment I couldn't take it any longer, it had been two weeks since my outburst. He hadn't gotten it, I was furious all of a sudden that he just assumed that I would be there, always there. In that moment I stammered out "I won't be there for any games." He and everyone else just looked at me. "What?" It was like surround sound. "I won't be there for any of your games. I got a full scholarship to a school in New York. It's what Charlie can afford. It's where I'm going." I turned and walked away. The tears stinging my eyes, I would not cry for him. "Bella, wait. What the hell? What school in New York? Why didn't you tell me? I thought the plan was…" Edward was stammering, he seemed so confused and I couldn't blame him. But I couldn't be a part of his plan anymore; I couldn't go and be the fifth wheel. "Edward I can't do this, I can't be your backup. I am going to New York, and I meant what I said stay out of my life!"

_**(End of flashback)**_

The song was ending and we were still standing there. I didn't know what to say, I wanted to run and hide, but he had a hold of me still. I wanted to laugh, that both figuratively and literally he had a hold of me still. "Should we go sit down? The others will be hunting for us; it will be safer if we head to them, before…" Edward ran his fingers through his hair, causing him to release his physical hold on me. I looked in the direction of the others, they were all sitting. It appeared that they hadn't noticed us dancing or the kiss at all. For that I was thankful. I nodded, and he put his hand on the small of my back and led me toward the table occupied by the others. My brain was no longer functioning, I was sweating and the next thing I knew was that Edward was helping me take the denim jacket off. I shrugged out of it, not thinking that his hand was still on the small of my back at this point. Everything suddenly felt right, like this was how it was supposed to be.

And then it happened. It took only a matter of seconds I didn't have time to sit down and hide my back. Everything seemed to shatter around me with one movement on my part and Edward being too observant. I felt him touch my back, where the skin was visible, he dragged his finger over it a couple of times and then I felt his hand splay across my back and then pull into a fist against it. And I could have sworn I heard him growl. I froze, stiffening. I was sure that my response gave it all away. But he didn't say anything. He motioned for me to sit with everyone. A drink was handed to me, and I took it. I needed it, because everything was becoming too much for me.

I heard the chatter of the group, I responded to some of the questions. Rose and Alice stayed true to their plan; they got a few in me and began the interrogation. Edward however jumped in and changed subjects. Pointing out that he wanted to dance, he dragged me up on my feet and placed his hand and arm across my back to lead me out on to the dance floor. The music was faster, it thumped it gave a different energy. Everyone else got up and followed us out to dance. "Later when I take you home, you will explain it all." He said in no uncertain terms. I looked at him like I didn't know what he was talking about. "Just dance with me, no more talking right now!" I yelled over my shoulder, batting my eyelashes at him. I turned and put my arm around his neck; he stopped and stood in place. I found myself singing along to the lyrics "I wanna wear my hair up in a mess. Cut off jeans, can you get with that? Give you something like you've never had. Cause I only wanna be wanted by you. I wanna tease you till you're begging me. And you're on your knees. And it's hard to breathe. And every other time is just a memory. Cause I only wanna be wanted by you…"

We danced several times, had a few more drinks and every time anyone tried to talk about where I had been Edward interrupted and changed the subject to something else. I didn't know if I should be thankful, or worried. It was midnight when he finally picked up my jacket and informed everyone that he was taking me home. Alice began to protest and Jasper interrupted her. "Ali, you will see Bella plenty, you know where she lives now, remember?"

I walked outside, trying very hard to compose myself. Every time we walked anywhere Edward had hidden my back. The top must have revealed more than I had realized. He led me to a shiny silver Volvo and opened the door for me. I was terrified to be in the small space with him. As he pulled the car onto the highway he turned to me "Are you going to explain now or later."

"Later. I need to clear my head first." I responded goose bumps covered my arms. Being so close to him, drowning is his scent was almost too much. I closed my eyes as he drove. He always drove so fast, it was like we were flying, it made me queasy. He must have thought that I had fallen asleep because when he arrived at the house, he opened the passenger side door kissed the top of my head and scooped me up in his arms. Charlie must have heard us and opened the door to the house. I was awake but I was not having the talk with Edward that he wanted, so I pretended to be asleep.

"Chief Swan." Edward said to my dad with nothing but respect. "Edward, should I ask what has happened to my daughter?" Charlie asked concerned, I knew Sue had to be close by. "She fell asleep in the car sir. If you can point me toward her room I will just set her in her bed and be headed out." He sounded very matter of fact. Charlie told him which room at the top of the stairs. I couldn't believe that he was letting a boy in my room, but then again it was Edward. He pushed open my door and entered the room. I heard him inhale deeply, and then he set me down on the bed and pulled the covers up over me. I rolled and tugged at them, trying to really make him think that I was sleep. I heard the window open, and silently thanked him, I was extremely hot from the whole night and the breeze that came through helped.

I heard him close the door and go door the stairs. Then I heard Charlie thank him and they must have stepped outside together because I heard them talking more. I moved out of bed and toward the window, "Edward, I would like to talk with you more sometime about my girl. I know how close you two always were, you looked out for her, protected her. She needs that, and I can do it to an extent but she needs more than what I can do. You understand?" Charlie's voice sounded hoarse. Edward replied back with two words "I do." Then Charlie spoke again, "Well, Sue and I will be headed out shortly. Thank you for keeping her safe tonight."

I heard the front door open and Charlie say something to Sue. I grabbed some pjs and changed for bed. I was laying there trying to sleep I could feel it starting to overtake me when something didn't feel right. I tugged at the blanket and shifted a little and snuggled against the pillow. But the pillow was hard like granite; I moved my hands over it not opening my eyes. Something wasn't right; my pillow was not a pillow. I felt the chuckle at the same time I heard it. I knew the voice, my heart raced but I refused to open my eyes. Strong muscular arms encircled me. It had to be a dream; why else would my pillow be smooth like silk, but hard like granite, why would it chuckle?

"You are a horrible actress. You do realize that right? Trying to get out of talking to me were you?" His voice was like music to me. I squeezed my eyes tighter. His fingers trace my back, though it was covered by a black tank top. "How did you get in here?" I asked still not opening my eyes. He chuckled again,"The window, I knew you were faking. Though I think Charlie knew as well and might have left the back door unlocked for me." I rolled away from him and regretted in instantly. His hand reached for my back, touching me lightly but I still flinched. Thank goodness he couldn't see my face. "So, like I asked earlier you ready to tell me about this?" There was clearly no way of getting around it.

* * *

Okay, I hadn't totally planned this chapter out, it just kind of happened. Since I have had no reviews I am assuming the story is going fairly well. But please good or bad let me know what you think. Thank you to those who have continued to read. I appreciate it. :) The two songs in this chapter are "You belong with me" by Taylor Swift and "Wanted" by Jessie James, I heard them and they seem to fit.


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

I lay there looking at Edward, I couldn't breathe. My brain just wouldn't work. But I knew I had to say something. Then I remembered the feeling of smooth granite and realized he didn't have a shirt on, knowing I would regret it as soon as I did it I scooted back against him to see if his shirt was the only thing missing. It was. I sighed. So here I was 29 years old, back in my childhood home town, lying in bed with my former best friend who I had carried around a giant crush for something like 10 or 11 years of schooling and then several after that. He was here in my bed without a shirt, while I was wearing boxer shorts and a tank top. My mind was reeling, it was two in the morning and I was in my bed with Edward and he was shirtless, and touching the skin of my back and arms. Every where he touched felt like it had been kissed by fire. The electricity that I felt was almost too much. I again was glad he couldn't see my face. I was sure it was on fire too.

"Bella?" He was growing impatient, but it was probably more from wanting to know what I was thinking than anything else. He had always hated when it took me longer than a second to answer him. I sighed again, knowing I needed to say something.

"Edward, why are you in my bed at 2 o'clock in the morning, with no shirt on?" I asked not really wanting to hear his answer, well yeah I did but more than anything I didn't want to have to retell the story I had spent hours working up the courage to tell Sue.

"Because, holding you on the dance floor, being next to you in the car, carrying you up to this room, it wasn't enough. I needed to…I needed to be near you like we used to be. I needed to smell your scent, to feel you close, to know that I could protect you from the monster at your door. I used to do that without ever thinking about it, and lately especially once I saw you at the club, I felt this strong urge to do it again. So now, you have to answer my question. What did that asshole do to you?" His voice was quiet but at the end it was forceful. It made me shake. I didn't know where to start but I knew that I would have to tell him, and he wasn't going to give up until I did.

"Bella, look at me." He said almost a whisper in my ear. I shook my head; I could feel the tears starting to form. "Bella, please, look at me." He was pleading, he voice full of need, I shook my head again because the tears had formed and began to slowly. "My beautiful Bella, oh my Bella, please don't hide your face from me. I have waited so long to see it again. He shifted his position and forced me to turn and face him. The tears were falling, my body was shaking uncontrollable, and my brain couldn't wrap it's self around the words he has spoken. _His Bella? Beautiful? _His green eyes were burning with something I didn't understand. The tears eased while I was studying his face, always so serious. He reached up with both hands and placed them on my face, wiping away tears with his thumbs. He stared into my eyes, and I could feel myself melting under his gaze. "I…I'm…too…I can't…why does it matter?" I asked needed to know that it mattered to him before I let it pour out of me like it was about to.

***EPOV***

"Why does it matter? Don't you get it, can't you see? I'm here Bella; I am here because you matter. You have always mattered. This weight that you are carrying, this secret that you think you can't tell, it matters to me, you have no idea how much it matters." I wanted to shake her, to yell at her, to hold her and protect her. I climbed up and into her window as soon as her father left, I held her while she began to cry on for him to stop. While she whimpered in pain, tossing and turning. I fought the urge to kiss each bruise, each scar that I could see, not to mention the ones I couldn't. I had thought he was a jerk when I saw him that day in New York, but I hated him when I saw the fist print on her back, and the imprint from some form of ring on it. "Bella, love if I could make it go away I would. I would take the hurt and the pain from you." I whispered looking into her eyes that were filling with tears.

"Edward, please don't hate me..."she said looking deep into my eyes. My heart broke again, much like it had before when it came to her. The first time was when she told me to get out of her life after a discussion with her about my then girlfriend Tanya. I was looking for a way out of that relationship and looking for a way to develop one with her. Then there was the graduation party, when I was planning how I would finally have Bella all to myself at college. And then she told me should wouldn't be there, that she would be on the other side of the country, because she had to get out from the shadow of us, to stop being my backup girl. The last time, was when I finally decided I couldn't let her leave without letting her know, I had bought her a promise ring. I wanted her to know that I loved her and would be ready whenever she was to create the future we should have. I climbed into her window that night, but what I found was her gone. The room was empty of anything that was truly her. She had left some things, pictures and books she wouldn't need. But it was clear she had left, two days early. On her desk was a piece of paper with my name on it. I picked it up and sat in the rocking chair that was in the corner near the window. I never brought myself to read it; I just folded it up and put it in my pocket. The note and the ring sat in the back of a drawer in my room.

"Anything to do with you always has and always will matter to me." I said hoping some how she would understand at last.

***BPOV***

"Edward, please don't hate me…" I knew I would never be strong enough to not tell him. He wouldn't have to put much effort into getting me to open up. He always made me feel safe in telling him what was on my mind. And here I was, about to let it all out for the second time in less than 16 hours. The tears came again, and he shifted us both so that he could look at me and keep his arms around me. I felt the words just flow out. I watched his face as I told him everything; he never changed emotions, always calm. I cried getting every last bit out, he wiped the tears. And when I was done, having told him things I had never intended him to find out. He held my face in his hands. "Isabella Marie Swan, I could never hate you. I have loved you almost my entire life. You are so strong, so beautiful. He never deserved you. And I will never let him hurt you again." The last part he said with venom in his voice.

I wiped the last few tears away, and laid my head against Edward, he stroked my hair and I felt him kiss the top of my head. "You need to rest now Bella." He said into my hair. "I don't want to sleep, what if this is a dream and I wake up to find you are gone. That you were never here." I was suddenly afraid of what he would think, that I sounded like a child. He kissed my hair again, and then tilted his head toward me and kissed me gently. "I learned my lesson Bella. I am here until you tell me to go." With that he began to hum what sounded like a lullaby and I was asleep in no time, asleep in the arms of Edward.

***EPOV***

I watched her sleep, and it was just like my dreams. Bella in my arms, her sweet smell was different than the strawberries I remembered but it was still intoxicating. I tried to sleep, laying there next to her. But the thought of what she had endured, that she had taken that treatment because for a time she was afraid of what would happen if she tried to leave. My blood boiled at the thought of how another man's hands had hurt her. It had been hard thinking of her being in another's arms for all these years, but to know that instead of holding her they had hurt her sent me into a rage. For her I kept myself calm, but on the inside I wanted to track the man down, and do things that would have me jailed. I didn't know how Charlie had managed to not call in favors and have the man destroyed. Bella had told me that her friend Jake has gotten her things moved out, and that his girlfriend Leah who was a lawyer was rushing the papers for a divorce. I made a mental note to mention to Charlie, or rather he will be Chief Swan at the time I talk to him, to have a restraining order put out on him. Just on the off chance that this psycho decided to try and find her. With that thought Charlie's words to me outside when he thought I was leaving came to me again "…you looked out for her, protected her. She needs that, and I can do it to an extent but she needs more than what I can do. You understand?"

I looked at Bella; I think the Chief was giving me permission to date his daughter. I smiled, now I would just have to get her to realize that we should be together as well. I closed my eyes, and inhaled again. A violet that is what she reminded me of now, not strawberries, violets. I think they were my favorite flower now. I sighed and drifted off dreaming of being if her and the family that I had wanted to have with her. It was while enjoying the idea of her round with my child that I heard the cry, it was faint at first and then something changed, she had shifted out of my arms and gotten out of bed. I rolled and listened to the sounds around me. And I heard her talking to someone. I sat up and listened to her whisper sweetly. The crying had stopped and there was just a soft hum as she sang to one of the children she had told me about. I followed the sound of her voice to a room down the hall and stood outside the doorway listening. She sang a song from when we were kids, I could remember when she used to sleep over with Alice, sometimes she would have trouble sleeping and she'd sneak not very quietly down stairs into the den and sit looking at a painting of a water lily Esme had and hum to herself. She would end up falling asleep there after a few minutes. When I was younger I would carry my blanket down and put it over her, but as I got older I would be able to carry her back upstairs to the guest room so she could be more comfortable. I learned the song, and would hum it to her so that she wouldn't wake up as I carried her. It made me smile to know that something from her childhood stuck with her and went with her when she left Forks.

I heard her stand and assumed she was putting the child back into bed; I was torn between heading back to her room so she wouldn't know I had listened in on her private moment with her child. But before I could push off the wall in the hallway she came out of the room and walked right into me.

My arms encircled her before she fell backward. "Oh! I'm sorry did Emily wake you? Wait what are you doing in the hall way?" She asked sounding overly apologetic. I began to release her hoping she could stand on her own, and then I got an eyeful of what she was sleeping in. I cleared my throat, and said "its okay, I wasn't really asleep anyways." My right arm was still around her waist and it felt like I couldn't pull it away. She blushed and looked down, hiding behind her hair. "Look at me Bella." I said and felt my voice grow hoarse. She hesitated; it made me more determined to her face, to see the tint of blush on her cheeks. To look into the molten chocolate of her eyes. "Look at me Bella. I told you earlier it has been too long that I have gone without seeing you face. Please don't deny me the pleasure now." She looked up at me through her lashes. I couldn't help it I scooped her up in my arms and carried her to her room. I never took my eyes off of her as I set her down on her bed. She was blushing from head to toe and said "Edward, I'm still married. I can't, we can't…"

* * *

Sorry I haven't updated sooner. I have a couple more chapters planned out. Let me know how it is going.


	11. Chapter 11

**

* * *

**

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and its characters

* * *

***BPOV***

I walked out of the little room down the hall that was now Emily's. She had woken at 3:40 and was crying. This was a reoccurring thing since that night. I had hummed the melody of an old song that I no longer knew the words to. It reminded me of how Edward had hummed to me. Suddenly I remembered him lying in my bed, with no shirt on. I worried about how I talked in my sleep. It took me all four years of college to stop saying his name in my sleep, I prayed for years that I never said it while I was with Brian, and now, now I was terrified that Edward had heard for himself. Emily fell back asleep and I set her back in her little bed. I walked out of her bedroom and right into something solid. Strong arms wrapped around me before I even rocked back on my heels.

"Oh! I'm sorry did Emily wake you? Wait what are you doing in the hall way?" I felt horrible thinking that Emily had woken him, and how he had endured so much tonight because of me. He started to release me and when his gaze went down and then back up me I became aware of my standard pjs, a tank top and boxer short set I had bought at Victoria's Secret a while back. He cleared his throat, and said "its okay, I wasn't really asleep anyways." His right arm was still around my waist and it felt like neither of us could pull away. I blushed and looked down, hiding behind my hair. "Look at me Bella." he said in a hoarse whisper. I hesitated. All I wanted was to look into the shocking depth of his emerald green eyes. But I was afraid to let him know that. "Look at me Bella. I told you earlier it has been too long that I have gone without seeing you face. Please don't deny me the pleasure now." I couldn't help it I looked up through my lashes. Before I could react he scooped me up in his arms and carried me to my room. I never took my eyes off of him as he set me down on the bed. Every possibility ran through my head making me blush from head to toe "Edward, I'm still married. I can't, we can't…" I began to say but was stopped abruptly by his pager.

_Beep beep beep beep. _We both looked in the direction of the piece of plastic that just managed to kill the mood. He put his head into the pillow next to me and it sounded like he let loose a string of profanities. "Augh! I have to go, that's the hospital." He said into the pillow. He pushed off the bed and grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head, sitting down he put his shoes back on and grabbed his pager and coat. I just sat in wonder at how quickly he had gotten ready. I barely felt him move and now he was at the door. "What you only use windows for coming in?" I asked to lighten his mood. I hated him leaving, but I hated him mad even more. He chuckled. "I only use the window when it comes to seeing you." I stood up and walked toward him. "You work at the hospital? I think I always knew you would follow in Carlisle's footsteps. He must be very proud." I didn't want him to leave; I could feel myself trying to stall. "He's a wonderful father, as a boss he expects a great deal out of me. I really don't want to leave, but oh, but I have to. For me it isn't the ER paging where someone else is there if I don't make it. I have specific patients. And one of them really needs me." He said and seemed to be reading my thoughts. I nodded. We walked downstairs to the front door. He stopped and turned as he stepped outside. "Can I call you later? Maybe come by after my shift today and we can talk and catch up? There is a lot more to you from the last eleven years that I would like to know about." He sounded hopeful and I felt like I couldn't say no. "Um, I don't know. I mean, well I…" I couldn't say no, but I couldn't seem to say yes either. He finally decided to take it upon himself to decide for us, "Bella, I'm coming back after my shift is over. I will bring dinner for all of us. End of discussion. I will call you later and you can tell me what I am bringing for dinner." And with that he kissed my cheek and headed to his car. I stood there stunned, I couldn't speak all I could do was watch him drive away. At four o'clock in the morning, Edward Cullen was leaving my house to save a patient, and he would be back with dinner. "Oh man. What am I going to do now?" I slapped myself on the forehead.

I closed the door and felt the spot on my cheek where he had kissed me, over the years that we had been friends he had done that same thing countless times, but for some reason this time felt different. I thought about the things he had said to me while I walked up the stairs to my room. I was going to lie down for a couple more hours until I had to be up for both children. Over and over I replayed the night in my head. I had known that even in escaping Forks, I had not left my feelings for Edward behind. In fact all I had done was pack them neatly away in the corner of my heart hoping that one day they would be forgotten they weren't. They were at the surface right now, and I did not know what I was going to do with them or with him. So for now I just closed my eyes and dreamt of what I had wished had happened.

It didn't take Alice long before she was calling me for the details of the night. My phone had buzzed four times before I decided to acknowledge it. I picked it up and looked at the time; it wasn't even eight o'clock in the morning. "Alice, my two children don't get me up this early. Why are you calling?" I mumbled in to my cell phone. "Um, hello it is almost 8AM and my brother did not come home last night! I want to know details right now, and where the hell is my brother!" She shouted in her nicest voice. "Alice nothing happened, he got paged to go to the hospital hours ago. In fact I think he left a little after he got here." I replied, thinking to myself how those four hours had flown by and didn't seem to have been nearly that long. "Well get your sorry hung over ass up, Rose and I are treating you to lunch. We have a lot of catching up to do." She replied and seemed determined about it all. "Rose and I will pick you up at noon." At that I cut her off. "Um Alice, two small children require car seats. Why don't I just meet you where ever it is that you and Rose insist on taking me?" I knew she was annoyed that I had interrupted her, but the fact of the matter was Rose didn't have car seats in her Mustang. "Hmm, true and Emmett will have already left with his car. Alright fine. Meet us at the house at noon then. And don't be late." It sounded like old times to me, but then I paused and said "What house?" I felt like a dummy when she replied. "_**The**_ house. Esme and Carlisle's house, our house. You know where we all live, duh!"

I don't know why I was surprised that they all lived there. The house was huge; most people would have called it a mansion, but not the Cullens. They preferred to call it a house. "Mansions were for people who felt they were of importance. And a house is for family." That is what Esme had told me the one and only time I ever used the term mansion in regards to it. "Alright, we'll be there. At noon." I said to her before handing up. I rolled over and shut my eyes, knowing that I only had a few minutes before one Emily and Joey would be up. All I could think about was the fact that it had been an interesting night and now it would be a very interesting day.

* * *

I'm sorry this one is so short...the next chapter will be better and is on the way. Promise!


	12. Chapter 12

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

When I pulled into the driveway of the Cullen's residence Alice and Rose were on the porch waiting for us. I couldn't believe that they didn't trust me to be there on time. Emily was chattering away, singing along to the songs on the cd I was playing for her. Joey had fallen asleep and looked like an angel. "Mommy, that's a big house." Emily said her eyes as big as saucers looking up at the house.

As I pulled Joey's car seat out of its base and the let Emily out of her car seat the front door opened and out walked Esme. She hadn't changed at all since I had last seen her. She approached my suv and instantly greeted me and my children with a hug. "Oh Bella dear. It is like one of my own children had finally come home!" She sounded relieved, hopeful and sincere in her words.

"Oh Esme, I have missed you all so much." I said feeling like her hug was the completing factor of my coming back to Forks. She held me at arm's length and examined me and then my two children. "Well dear Bella. You look like you could use a good meal. But these two little ones are absolutely beautiful. And from the sounds of what my youngest son had to say to his father on the phone this morning, I will not be asking about their father. Oh Bella. I wish you had felt you could have come to us at some point. You really are like a daughter to both Carlisle and I." I found myself fighting back the tears. "Esme, Alice and Rose don't know about any of it. And I am not sure what Edward has told Carlisle. Please let's not get into it at lunch." It came out sounding more like a plea than anything else. She nodded in understanding. "I have a couple of people I would like you to meet. Would you like that?" She said to Emily holding out her hand. I wasn't sure my little girl would take it, but she did and walked up and into the house with her.

I followed behind carrying Joey. When I reached the porch I was instantly embraced by the silly pixie and all her strength. Rose threw an arm over my shoulder as well and I was welcomed back into my former second home. Alice couldn't wait to get her hands on Joey and declared that she couldn't wait for one of her own. Esme laughed from the kitchen, and then said something I hadn't expected "You know I will believe it when I see it. Just like Rose declaring all those years that she would never have children. And now look at her." And so I did. She looked no different than she did when I last saw her. In fact she looked more stunning to me. And then I saw it, the glow. She must have sensed it and held up her fingers, three of them. My jaw dropped.

"I must have missed something here; you are going to have triplets?" I knew as soon as I said it that I was wrong. And all she did was shake her head. "No silly Bella. I am only having one this time." She giggled at me. At that I realized that there were more voices in the house than just the four of us. Emily, Esme had said she had a couple of people for her to meet. "They are in the play room, come on." Esme said holding her hand out to lead me to where Emily and the other two children were. I couldn't believe it. They looked just like Rose and Emmett only reversed. The boy had blonde hair like Rose but was definitely a miniature Emmett, and the girl had dark ringlets. I couldn't believe it. They were beautiful just like Rose, and then the little boy proved to be a bear just like Emmett when he gave Emily a hug and picked her right up off the ground. She giggled loving it. I could have sworn for a second that she had a sparkle to her eye, all I could think was "oh no, another Swan-Cullen crush. What am I going to do about that?" Rose was smiling away and I turned to her and couldn't help but smile too. "So when are you due? I asked her trying to remember if I had seen her drink anything the night before. And to be honest I remembered Emmett only bringing her water. At the time she had said that she was driving her car home, because no one else was allowed to drive it.

She smiled "New Years Eve, but we already scheduled the delivery for the week before." I hugged her and congratulated her. Alice was very excited now, and said to me "I am so glad you are home now, because you can totally help me with the baby shower." I smiled looking at Emily playing with Rose's children, "What are their names?" I couldn't help but ask, so that I could remind Emily of the fun she had with her new friends. "Jane and Alec, we both choose one boy name and one girl name up them in a hat and drew. Turned out we both put Jane in. At the time Edward was reading a lot of Jane Austin books. And one was always around, it stuck out to both of us."

It was clear that the twins were about a year older than Emily, I looked at Rose and said "Edward was reading Jane Austin? He always complained about me reading her books in high school. I thought he hated her work. Why was he reading Jane Austin?" It was more to myself really. But then Alice answered, "It was after he came back from that conference in Rochester. I think. He started with Pride and Prejudice." Then Rose without thinking said "Yeah, it was. I think Emmett said at one point back then that he had seen you and when he came back he was knee deep in Jane Austin books and Wuthering Heights. It was depressing really." My head was spinning; Edward had been in my city. Why hadn't he contacted me? He told them he had seen me, but when?

While we had talked Joey awoke in Alice's arms and was taking in his surroundings, and bless his heart he must have sensed that he was in a safe place because he looked up at Alice and smiled a big grin at her. And right there she melted. "We need to go shopping for this little man. I can only imagine what you have for him to wear. And I won't let any nephew of mine be left up to your fashion sense." She sounded so confident about it, smiling away at Joey and unaware of the look on my face. Standing there in the middle of the three "Cullen" women (even though Alice was now a Hale) gaping at Alice. "Um Alice, not to burst your bubble but…" I began but was cut off by Esme who was setting the table for our lunch. "Dear if Edward still has that ring up in his drawer that he bought for you, Alice isn't too far off."

"RING?" It came out as a yell, but I didn't mean for it to, this was a lot for me to wrap my head around, and then I realized that both Rose and Alice had said it too. "Oh damn, he has no idea that I even know that it is up there. Poor boy bought it with money he had saved for over a year or so. He hid it after you left. I found it while putting away his laundry several years ago, I'm sure it is still there. But like I said he has no idea that I found it." I sat in the chair, just totally overwhelmed. And then I heard Alice say in a tone that made me nervous "I need to see it!" and she handed Joey off to Esme and was up the stairs and gone faster than I could even turn my head to watch her. It took a few moments and then, then there was the screech. My heart knew that she had found it.

* * *

Okay, so she knows about the ring and somethings are hitting her pretty hard about his possible feelings. Next chapter...more alone time for the two of them. He did promise to stop over so they could talk...


	13. Chapter 13

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

The rest of the day went by in a haze and before I knew it we were headed back to my significantly smaller house across town. Edward had called me several times, most while at the house with Rose, Alice and Esme.

**(Flashback)**

After finding the ring, Alice began babbling about planning events for me, and I just picked at my salad. Esme sensed the change in my earlier happy mood to one of confusion. She pulled me aside at one point "I'm sorry I have made you uncomfortable. If you knew how much he has cared for you all these years. Oh Bella, my son is smart about a great many things, but when it comes to his heart and opening it up to those who care for him, this he is clueless about. Especially when it came to you. Hel realized that he loved you when he was nine years old, but he didn't realize that he had to tell you until you told him you were leaving. Then it was too late and you were gone." We had walked to the den away from Emily, Jane and Alec as well as Rose, and Alice who was still fawning over Joey. I walked in to the den and looked up for comfort to the painting I had always loved, and found it gone.

I turned to Esme. "Where's the painting?" It had been replaced by some nature scene that I didn't like as much. Esme smiled, "Follow me." We ascended the stairs to the second floor. I noticed there were pictures from throughout our childhood all over the walls going up the stairway. Esme turned to me and looked very serious, "What I show you now is to remain between us. Alice and Rose haven't seen this; it was something Edward asked for after he graduated from medical school. He intended to come and tell you how he felt. To win you over and get you to move back with him." She opened the door to the room that was next to what had been Edward's and probably still was.

The room was beautiful. It had been one of many guest rooms. I had even stayed in it a couple of times. It was larger now though, and I couldn't figure out how that was. Esme had redecorated it in shades of green and cream. Positioned over the small fireplace in the room was the painting. It was the centerpiece of the room, and in various spots were pictures of all of growing up, there were several candid's of Edward and I. The furniture was a beautiful cherry wood set, a sleigh bed with head and foot boards, matching night stands, dresser, mirror and chest. The window had a bench built in with fluffy pillows on it, a bookshelf build into the wall. The bed was screaming for me to lay down on it, instead I just ran my hand across the quilt. I loved it; everything seemed to compliment the painting.

"Esme, it is beautiful." I said continuing to examine the room. There were cream colored roses on one night stand, and silk gardenias on a small table in another corner. My phone buzzed in my pocket I knew it was him before I even looked. "Yes Edward?" I said when I answered it; I took in the intensity of what it all meant. "So what's the plan for dinner? Did you decide what I'm either picking up or making for dinner?" He sounded happy, overly so. I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat, "you don't have to do anything, really. I don't want to put you out at all. And I had a late lunch at the house with Alice, Rose and your mom, so…" I felt overwhelmed, I was in a grand suite of a bedroom that was designed with me in mind and somewhere in the room next door was a ring bought with me in mind. "Bella, no getting out of this, if you don't tell me something that means that I am stopping and getting hospital leftovers before I leave here. So what is it going to be?" He chuckled. "I don't want you to go out of your way, really." I was looking at Esme who was shaking her head at me with a smile on her face. I sighed she was not going to help me here at all. He sighed, "Put my mother on the phone. I am assuming she is right there." I turned and looked at her again. "I, I how did you know I was still at the house?" I asked afraid he was here and would find us in this room. I didn't know how I was going to handle all that I had learned this afternoon, let alone be near him now.

"Just put Esme on." He said more directly. I handed her the phone, "He, um, wants to talk to you." She smiled and I thought she looked like she was plotting something. "Hello dear," she said very cheerfully. I don't know what he was saying, but Esme's side of the conversation was almost as impossible to follow with her ambiguous responses to him "Yes. Well of course. Would you like me to? Well I just might. I'm your mother and even though you think you know everything, sometimes I still know what is best for you even when you don't. Yes. Don't take that tone with me young man. Goodbye Edward." She hung up the phone and handed it back to me. She winked and said, "Well my son is not happy with me, and he is on his way home before heading to you house to talk." We looked out of the room and I turned to take one last look before she closed the door. I gathered up Emily and Joey said good bye to Rose and her twins. Alice was busily writing out plans for showers and other schemes. She promised to call me later if she didn't hear from me after Edward had left my house.

**(End of Flashback)**

So here I was sitting on the floor playing with Emily and her Fisher Price little people while Joey was playing in his excer-saucer giggling away at his reflection in a small mirror attached to it. I was not totally listening to Emily as she babbled away about playing with Jane and Alec, it was clear they had had fun, and I was glad. Rose and I had discussed having more play dates. Esme even offered to watch both Emily and Joey for me when I worked my shifts at the Police station. I thought playing with children close to her age would be good for her, and I knew how close I had been with the Cullen's growing up and wanted the same for Emily. It was in the midst of listening to my little girl and thinking about the beautiful room Edward had created and the ring that he still had for me that the doorbell rang. I looked up at the door, and I knew it was Edward. Emily looked up too; she smiled and yelled "Grandpa Charlie!" as she ran toward the door. I followed her, and opened the door to see a flustered looking Edward with two bags with take out. Emily looked up at him and said "You aren't Grandpa Charlie!" He chuckled and got right down to be eye level with her, "You're right I am not Grandpa Charlie. I am Edward, and I am an old friend of your mommy's. Just like Alec is your friend." Emily gave him her biggest smile and turned to go back to her toys satisfied that he was safe since he knew Alec, and based on her constant chatter after we had left, if Alec said it was so, she would believe it.

I gestured for Edward to come in and offered to help him with the bags that he had. "Point me toward the kitchen." he said with confidence. I lead him through the living room and into the kitchen. "I like what you did with it."He said as he looked around the small room. I looked around for the first time really and noticed that Charlie and Sue had found all of my matching dinnerware accessories and had put everything out somewhere. "Charlie and Sue did most of it; the pattern was mine from back in New York. It's called Orleans." I was so nervous about him being here. I didn't know if he was mad about today, I never got to ask Esme what he had said to her. I watched him as he moved around my small little kitchen. He almost looked at ease, and even more so I liked how he looked here. Like he belonged here, and I tried not to over think that one. He turned and caught me watching him, "You going to stare at me, or help?" He asked and before I could answer Emily's small voice came from the doorway behind me "I a helper. I put napkins on the table. Mommy says I'm a good girl and her best helper." She walked right up to him and put her hand out for the napkins. He gave three and she walked over to the table and placed them at the spots she had designated for us. He opened the cabinets and found the plates, when Emily was done with the napkins he handed her the plates. The two of them quietly set the table and dished out what looked like Chinese.

Edward turned to me smiled and said "Are you hungry? I got your favorite." I sniffed the air, "Is that from Golden Gate?" my mouth began to water, Edward and I had lived off of take out from Golden Gate our senior year. He smiled as he placed Emily into her booster seat at the table. I marveled at her ease with him, she had never let her father do that. "Now what about the little guy, I heard he was nothing but smiles for Alice. I also heard she has plans for you, something about another shower. Man Rose is going to have to explain to her that she needs to ease up on those things. I don't think Emmett can handle another one." He walked passed me chuckling and returned with Joey in his arms. I was surprised how comfortable he was with both Emily and Joey, but then again he was an uncle to twins. He placed Joey in his high chair, and when Joey smiled he slid his finger across his gums and felt for teeth. "Okay buddy this is for you." He said placing a small bowl in front of him, and then scooping something from another bowl with his hand sprinkling it on the tray. "Mashed bananas and cheerios and when he is done, I'll bathe him since it will be my fault he got dirty." I smiled "Deal" I couldn't believe how well he was dealing with both of my children. It was almost how my life should have been, if things had gone right instead of wrong.

Dinner was delicious, Edward and Emily chatted the whole time. She told him all kinds of stories and he in turn listened and validated her comments. Joey was covered in banana but had eaten fairly well, and there wasn't a single cheerio in sight. When the table was cleared and both Emily and Joey were bathed and in bed Edward stood in my living room looking at a picture on the mantel and said "We need to talk." The lump was back, I knew dinner had gone too well and now this was the shoe dropping. Was it because of today; was it because of the things I told him last night? I could feel the panic forming. I sat down on the couch, when he turned to look at me I bit my lip. He walked over and sat next to me. His hand went to touch mine, and I saw that I was shaking and so did he. He took my hand and interlaced our fingers he lifted the two and turned my hand over brought it to his lips and kissed it.

"I know this is all a lot, and I'm sorry you have been dragged into it all. If Sue and I had not gone into Alice and Rose's shop the other day…" He cut me off before I could finish. "If Sue hadn't taken you in there, then I wouldn't have a second chance right now. Not that I even deserve the chance, but I have it, and because of that I am going to be greedy." He was still holding my hand, his fingers now playing with mine the feeling sent shivers down my spine. I looked down and saw that he was tracing circles with his fingers on the back of my hand, they paying extra attention to my ring finger. "I did a great many things wrong over the years, and now I get the chance to try and do them right. I hope you will give me the opportunity that is. I would like the chance to take you out on Friday." He lifted my chin to look me in the eyes.

"So, do you have plans for Friday evening?" I tried to think of what to say, and then it came to me. "Yes, actually I do." He looked sad all of a sudden "Oh. Well then maybe another time?" I tried not to laugh at him, and his eyes got quizzical "What is so funny?" I shrugged, "My plans were with you, but if you want to cancel that's up to you." He his deep green eyes, widened and then he said in a tone that sounded like I could be in trouble "I'm not canceling. Now, for the rest of our evening, I have a couple of movies and popcorn in the last bag over there. You up for it?" He wiggled his eye brows at me. I laughed and got up to grab the bag. I tossed him the popcorn and looked at what he had grabbed. "Um, Edward did you choose these or did Alice?" I asked laughing at the choices. "I asked Alice to pick two, and then I grabbed two. I figured the variety would be good to chose from instead of everything being the same. Why?" He sounded nervous. "Oh don't worry. Here, this is a funny one from what I have heard." Edward came back into the living room with the bag of popcorn, as I put the DVD in. "What did you pick?" He asked. I laughed "Well Alice picked it, it was also the only one in a case, and so it would appear that we didn't have much of a choice. Unless you don't want to watch it at all and we can find something else either from my movies or on TV." I handed him the case. _**Ghosts of Girlfriends Past**_. Edward laughed "Leave it to Alice."

We sat down on the couch next to each other, I sat with my legs folded underneath me and began watching the movie, at some point we had gotten so into the movie or at least I had that I didn't notice him put his arm around me and move me closer to him. I also did catch him rest his other hand on my thigh; it wasn't until I rested my head against his shoulder that I caught the hitch in his breathing. I turned to look at him and see if he was okay. His eyes were closed and his head was turned toward me, he seemed to be sniffing my hair. "Edward, what are you doing?" I asked. He didn't open his eyes; he breathed deeply and said "Violets. You used to smell like strawberries, but now you smell like violets."

He opened his eyes and looked at me, the color reminded me of rare emeralds, my mouth went dry he leaned in towards me and inhaled again. I stopped breathing, wondering what he was going to do. Anticipating the kiss that was coming I bit my lower lip. "That used to drive me nuts when we were in school. It always made me want to…" But before he could say it, he was doing it, he was kissing me. Edward was kissing me like I had dreamed of for so long. I sighed against him, his tongue tracing my lower lip, asking for permission, trying to coax me mouth open. My body responded to him, granting him entrance, taking down the walls that had surrounded me. I found myself pressing against him, his arm drawing me closer his other hand holding my thigh as if he was hanging on to me for dear life. As his tongue slid into my mouth and touched my own my body responded again, with a sound that I had never made before. I let out what sounded like a cross between a moan and his name, goose bumps spread across my entire body, and a shiver raced down my spine. Edward broke the kiss, breathing heavy and resting his forehead against mine.

"Bella, I want to take this slow. Do it right, like I should have before. I am not going to lie to you, in fact flat out; I am telling you right now, I have been in love with you for most of my life. Please just listen before you say anything. Because I need to not regret telling you this, but after talking to Esme this afternoon, I think you might already know. And if you don't I need you to hear it from me before some deranged pixie find out and deems it her right to tell you." He sighed, I knew what was coming, but I sat silently with my head against his. "I loved you for so long; I don't know why I never told you back in school. I think I wanted you, well both of us to have a chance to see other people before we were together because I knew we would last and the others wouldn't. I didn't want you to miss out on things because of me. I didn't think it was fair. I hated it though. Seeing Newton stare at you all the time, listening to the retelling of dates, hearing how he tried to feel you up at homecoming. I was so glad that you turned everyone down for prom. I, I, I guess I always thought that you knew I was there waiting for my chance. That when we went away, that I would finally have it. That once we graduated I would propose, and after med school we would have the wedding of our dreams. I guess I planned it all out in my head, but I forgot to tell you the plan. And because of that, I lost you. Bella, I don't want to lose you again. This time, my only plan is to take it a day at a time. I won't push, however you want to handle it, I will take it. Also, because well like I said I don't want my sister to do it for me, there is this." He reached into his pocket, my heart stopped all together.

"I bought this for you after Prom; I was going to give it to you after graduation. And well, you know what happened. I actually went to your house before you were supposed to leave for school, I climbed the old oak and into your bedroom window. But you were gone. I kept it, hoping that one day you would come home, maybe at Christmas break, or when school let out. But you never did." I closed my eyes listening to him, realizing that I had been so stupid, so wrapped up in myself and how I hated that I was his backup, but here he was telling me that he only did that so that I would not regret having only been with him. He didn't put the ring on my finger instead he placed it in the palm of my hand and closed my fingers around it. "This was supposed to be my promise to you…" I opened my eyes, and then opened my hand, and then opened my mouth at what was before me.

"Edward this is not a promise ring…" I said as I stared down at my hand. It was an engagement ring, a Tiffany's engagement ring. I couldn't speak, but then he did. "I decided that you needed better than the promise of a teenage boy who was too stupid to tell you how he truly felt. You needed the promise of a man, who loved you more than life itself. Bella, I don't want you to say yes, not right now. We have a lot to get you through first. We have a lot to get us through first. But I need you to know, that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to be with you until I take my last breath. I told you I learned my lesson. And unless you tell me no, that it is never going to happen, this ring is yours." He let out a ragged breath; he hadn't opened his eyes yet.

The movie was over and I was trying to find the words for what had just happened. I was fighting back the tears, but this time they were good ones. He loved me; he had always loved me, just as I had always loved him. So I said it "Edward, I left because I loved you and I thought you didn't love me the same way. I didn't come back, well because I loved you. I thought that you would have found someone, and been happy and I couldn't stand the thought of that so jealousy for someone who didn't exist kept me away. I settled for someone that I shouldn't have, because I loved you, I took beating because he knew that you still had my heart whether you knew it or not. I came home because I needed to be in the one place where I had once been happy. I never dreamed that I would come back and have you here like this, but deep down I had hoped. I drove here praying that you still be around, that I would have my friend. I never dreamed of the chance for more. I came back because I love you still." I sighed and he finally opened his eyes, the emerald green held something more again. They sparkled like the diamond on the ring in my hand.

"I have something else for you, but I had to give you the ring first. This is so that no matter what, until you are ready to wear my ring on your finger that you know you have my heart forever." He opened his hand and down dangled a huge crystal heart on a chain. He placed it around my neck, and then looked at me. I touched the heart with the hand that wasn't holding the ring, and then I looked back at the ring. "Can I keep it? Or do you want to hold on to it until…well, I don't know what to say. I am assuming that you plan on proposing at some point. Unless that was, I mean…um…" I was tripping over my own words. I couldn't stop looking at the ring. My fingers twitched with wanting to try it on. With the idea of this being on me forever, that if I hadn't left this would already be on me. "Bella, I want to be able to do this all right. But when have we ever done anything the way that we were supposed to? If you want to try it, see if it even fits, if you even like it on. You can." I fumbled with it, afraid to damage it, it looked like it cost a fortune, and I had never owned anything remotely close to this. "Here let me, so in case I don't get the chance later I can say I put on you at least once." He let out a nervous laugh and slid the ring on to my left ring finger. I looked at it, it was perfect and I began to feel the tears fall. I looked up at him, and he appeared to be holding his breath. "Edward, when the time comes and you want to ask, I know my answer." I held his face in my hands and he closed his eyes again, leaned against my forehead again and let out the breath he had been holding. Before either of us could say anything further his phone rang. He didn't move, and it stopped. "It wasn't the pager, whoever it is can wait." He said almost breathlessly, he leaned in to kiss me. It wasn't like the last one; this had the promise of forever in it. The promise of the ring on my finger and the pendant I wore, the promise of his love. His phone went off again, then stopped then started again. He let out a growl, and when the phone rang a fourth time we both knew who it was. When it stopped this time we thought that she had given up, but were proven wrong when my phone rang. He grabbed it and spoke in a tone I had never heard from him before "MARY ALICE HALE, DO YOU MIND!" I couldn't hear her, but I could only imagine her being upset that he hadn't answered her calls, "Alice, I am trying to admire the beauty of the woman I love, and the way she makes a diamond ring sparkle. Now if you don't mind I want to finish kissing her like she deserves. I will tell her to call you tomorrow when she is free, because she will not be that way for the rest of the night!" and with that he hung up my phone and turned it off, then he grabbed his phone and did the same. "Like I said it wasn't the pager, anything else can wait."

***EPOV***

I can't believe that I just told my sister I had basically proposed to Bella. When I got home from the hospital I entered my room to find the drawer where the note from Bella and the ring I bought open, clothes in a pouring out of it. Someone, Alice I assumed had found the ring. I went to the drawer and reached the back where the velvet box was. It had been moved, "MARY ALICE!" I yelled and she came bouncing into my room. I held the box up, and she screamed. "I knew it; you are going to propose to her! Oh Edward, I am so happy for you!" I growled and said to her "Does she know about this? Clearly someone went through my drawer and found it, does she know?" Alice seemed unmoved by my anger. "Edward, she knows but she doesn't. She hasn't seen it, though I think Esme showed her the room. Why do you assume that I don't know everything or that at times that I don't know them before you do?" She smiled at me. "Just ask her Edward. Just tell her how you feel and ask her."

Before I left for Bella's I stepped into the room next to mine, I thought of her and what I would say to her when I got to her house. I looked t the painting that she had loved for so many years, thinking of how greedy I had been in wanting to hide it way, that like my heart it had belonged to her. I decided then what I would do, that I would give it to her. Give her my heart and all my love as I should have so long ago.

And now I had her pinned on her couch, like an angst driven teenager, making out with her. All I wanted was to touch her. Hold her, love her the way I should have for all those lost years. "Bella," my voice was rough, my heart was pounding and I didn't want this to go any farther if it wasn't what she wanted. She looked up at me, her chocolate eyes melting me instantly; she seemed to know where my thoughts were going. She reached and hit the power button on the remote, I moved to help her and she hopped up off the couch. I grabbed her waist and pulled her back to me, my arms felt empty without her, "where are you going?" I asked in a playful tone. With that she did something I didn't expect, she crushed her mouth to mine, and grabbed at the waist of my pants. As fast as she had done it she hopped off and run toward the stairs laughing. "What are you doing?" I asked sensing that she was playing some kind of game; I looked down and then back up at her trying to determine what had happened. She laughed and then waved her hand at me, the gleam of the diamond she still had on stunned me and then I saw what she was holding. "Bella…not funny." She had a teasing look on her face when she said "You better come and get it then. Or hope that it doesn't go off." I hopped off the couch and over the love seat and in three strides was at the stairs grabbing for her. She squealed and ran up the stairs. Taking them two at a time I was behind her in seconds and reached her before she got to the door to her bedroom.

"Where are you going with my pager?" I asked as I pinned her against the wall in the hallway. "Isn't enough that you are running around with my heart all the time, now you had to have my pager?" I teased her and raised her arms over her head kissing her neck where the chain holding the pendant lay. She released my pager and a soft moan at the same time. I looked up at her, not wanting to wait the babies. Took her wrists with my free hand and pulled her into her room. "Now where were we?" I asked as I set my pager on her nightstand and began to kiss her neck again.

* * *

**Sorry it took so long for me to update, this ended up being much longer than I had planned. I am also working on another story that I will put up within the next few days. The next chapter for this one is coming, probably tomorrow. I hope you liked this one. I also posted pictures of the painting, ring and necklace on my profile. Thanks for reading. :)**


	14. Chapter 14

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***BPOV***

The week had gone by in a flash. I spent my days working at the Police station, taking calls, sorting and filing reports and spending some much needed time with Charlie. We had lunch together, and twice Sue brought Emily and Joey in to see us. Sue and Esme had set up two play dates for Jane, Alec and Emily at the park in town. And Edward spent his time either at the hospital doing his rotations or helping me at the house with the last of the boxes that I had been avoiding. After our "talk" Sunday night he spent almost all his free time with us, getting to know both Emily and Joey and me as well. Our friendship seemed to pick up right where it left off, and he kept his hands to himself when the kids were awake. Once they were asleep it was as if we were teenagers, pawing at each other.

I told him before things went too far that first night that I didn't want to cross that line until I had signed my name on the dotted one, so to speak. Edward had reluctantly agreed, but his hands still wandered while his mouth claimed mine. He was also reluctant to take the ring back as well. When I slipped it off that night he wore an expression of sorrow, he was almost pained that I had removed it. I looked at him reading the obvious hurt in his eyes and said "I still have the heart on, I just can't promise to marry you while I am still married to someone else." He looked to my hand then to where the crystal hung around my neck, his eyes fixed there. "You have always had my heart."

It was Friday, and as great as the week had been something felt off to me. It was like the air had changed, it was heavy and it carried an uncertainty with it. All morning long I had been feeling like the other shoe was going to drop. Edward had stayed over leaving very early in the morning to get home before heading in to meet with patients. The bed felt empty without him next to me, and it was strange how our level of intimacy was that he didn't seem to mind that as badly as we both wanted things to go farther we never let it. We just held each other and talked about nothing and everything until we fell asleep.

It was around noon when my phone rang, I tried to avoid having it on, but I wanted Sue to be able to get a hold of me if anything went wrong. Charlie loved that I had welcomed her into my life so quickly; we even had plans to have family dinner with her and her son Seth. I had never really made the connection between Leah and Sue since we had never met while we both lived in Forks. Leah had spent most of her time on the reservation with her friends. It wasn't until Jake had forced us together when he was trying to decide to propose to her or not that it had come to me. I was thankful for Leah, so I felt that I owed Sue that and then some. She had always been good to my dad as a friend, so I was glad to see him happy with her.

I knew that it wouldn't be Edward calling me, and Sue had just called Charlie to say that they were on their way for lunch. Alice and Rose had stopped in this morning telling me that they had something for me at the shop, I just couldn't think of who would be calling me while I was working. By the time I fished my cell phone out of my purse, which Alice was so proud that I owned. I had missed three calls. I went to the missed calls option and saw that it had been Jake. He never called repeatedly, he used to joke about Brian doing that and say it was the mark of a truly desperate person. I set the phone back down, Jake never left messages he would wait for me to call back. And then it went off again. This was getting odd, I looked at the number it was him again, "Jeez Jake, desperate much?" I asked joking with him and expecting him to laugh, he didn't. "Bells, Leah and I are at the airport, we are on our way there. Can you get Charlie on the phone, it's important." He sounded stressed. "Um yeah hang on," I got up from the desk and walked into Charlie's office, "Here; Jake needs to speak with you about something." I bit my lip; I was getting that feeling again. The shoe was about to drop. "Hey there Jacob, I take it that this call is not one for catching up or asking about the ball game from last night. Right. I want her to hear this, Jacob." He looked at me and said "Put it on speaker, I have no idea how to work these damn phones." I took the phone and pushed the button that put it on speaker. "Jake what is going on?" I asked, feeling it, knowing it was coming before he said the words.

"Bella, Leah and I are coming there, she has some papers she needs you to sign, and they can't be faxed. And we needed your dad to know, that one of them is for a restraining order. Bells, he took off. Leah has been trying to track him down. We never told him where you went. He threatened some things, so Leah has had some friends in the PD keeping tabs on him. But the other day, he just took off. We think he might be headed to you, if he hasn't already been there." His voice was worried. "We will be there in a couple of hours; we have one last flight nonstop heading out in about 20 minutes. I had to let you know. If you get any calls, anything at all call the police. Leah pushed some things through with friends would work with the Feds; his name has a red flag on it. If he pops up anywhere he'll get stopped. Promise me Bella, no hero nonsense. We will see you soon." I didn't know what to say, I could feel my body begin to shake. Charlie looked at me extremely serious; I could feel the tears forming. "Bells, I am going to start the paper work at this end, and while I do that you are going to tell me everything. Jake doesn't sound like he is talking about someone who was unhappy and hit you once or twice and you left. Bella, I need to know so that if this man comes after you or those babies I have every right as you father and the Chief of Police to kill him because he is a danger to you." I swallowed, sat down and began to tell my father about the last few years of my life. When I finished telling him everything, his fists were white, gripping the pen in his hand holding a fury I had never known in him. Then he did something I didn't expect.

"Bella, I am going to take the kids down to the reservation this weekend, those boys don't let strangers near the place. You are going to stay with the Cullens. He will not be able to get to any of you before the restraining order is set. Then I am going to have one of the boys from the state pick him up. And I am going to do my best not to kill him while he is in custody. Call Edward, now."

His whole face was switching from red to purple and back again. He gestured for his deputies to enter the office, he gave a description of Brian and the bare bones facts on him, and then he told them that he was wanted for assault and battery. When they asked who had filed the charge, and if there was a restraining order, he told them I was filing the charge and one was on the way. Each one got almost as railed has my father, and then I had the thought of telling Edward. I became terrified.

I knew he would be at the hospital, with patients; he didn't need to worry about me. But I knew that if I didn't call Charlie would. So I dialed and prayed for his voicemail. Thankfully that was what I got, "Edward, um there has been a slight change of plans. Um call me when you have a chance. Okay, um talk to you later. Bye." I hung up and touched the crystal that was tucked under my shirt. I had thought it was a bit flashy, and didn't want to upset Charlie by wearing it. He had seen it though right away on Monday when I came in. I hadn't tucked it in yet, he didn't ask where I had gotten it just smirked and said "It's about time that boy got it right." He went about his work and never commented to me on it. It was all he needed to say, and I knew he would be okay with me and Edward if anything more came of us.

I was fine with Charlie taking Emily and Joey down to La Push. The Quileute tribe was a close knit community, no doubt Jake had called his dad and Sue either before he called me or after. Charlie was right; the Quileute's would not let anyone they didn't know near the reservation. The community of La Push was well known in Forks, and most residents of Forks had been down to First beach on the reservation. There was no safer place for them right now. And Charlie knew that where ever they were I would want to be, and if he was here it was best to not give him access to my children.

I called Alice, knowing she would be thrilled that I was spending my time with them, but I needed to be honest with her and Rose about things. I hadn't yet, and if anything happened I did not want any of the Cullens getting hurt on my behalf. "Hey, I need to see you and Rose. I'm coming down to the shop. It's important." Alice even when worried tried to sound excited. "Bella come whenever, Rose and I are doing what we do best, shopping. We'll find you something hot for tonight and your date with my brother."

I told Charlie where I was headed, he just nodded, I couldn't tell if he was mad that I hadn't told him everything, or if he was planning on committing homicide and was just plotting it all out in his head. I heard him talking to someone on the phone as I was heading out the door. "She needs to be protected…I don't trust him." I shook my head, what had I done. My father was angry, my friends could be in danger, I was the only one he had ever hit, but that didn't mean he would stop there if one of them tried to protect me. I hated that this was happening. I called Sue as I was heading down East Division Street from the Police station; I was less than a mile from the shop on North Forks Road. I explained what was going on and that I was going to get some clothes for the two of them and bring them to the station. She was concerned for me, wished that I would come down there too. She even said that Billy, Jake's dad would have the borders watched. Jake's friends and relatives would all stand up and protect me. I was like family to them. I told her I would discuss it with Charlie. I arrived at the shop, and took a deep breath as I walked in.

* * *

This chapter isn't as long, but I am setting up for what is coming... Thank you for reading and reviewing iwannabegilmore, it means a great deal to know that someone else likes it. :)


	15. Chapter 15

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight

* * *

***APOV***

Bella had come in to the shop stressed that she need to talk to Rosalie and I about something very important. I knew that things were going well with her and Edward because well he told me. Every time he came in from being at her house he was smiling and humming some melody. I caught him one day when he thought no one was around, smiling and looking at the baby grand piano that Esme and Carlisle had bought when we were children. Edward was the only one of the three of us to ever play it. He had taken lessons and even written some pieces for Esme. When were in high school he was working on another one, Esme had asked if it was a new one for her and he shook his head and said it was for someone else. None of us needed to be told that it was for Bella. The night she left for school was the last time he touched the piano. He played the song once, closed the lid and walked away from it. About three days ago I found him looking at the piano. I told him to just play it already; he looked up surprised and then went over and played. It was the melody he had been humming and it was beautiful. I sat and listened, soon Esme and Rose joined me. Esme had a tear in her eye as she smiled brightly at him. None of us said a word afraid to break the spell of him playing again.

I thought about that moment as I watched Bella stand before me trying to get out whatever it was that she needed to say. "Just tell us already!" I couldn't help it, if it was so important why didn't she just get it over with. She looked down and then up at us, tears were pouring out of her eyes. I knew that it couldn't have to do with Edward, these two belonged together. "Bella what is going on? You are seriously freaking me out right now." I said as I approached her, Rose followed me to her and we hugged her. She began to sob it was almost uncontrollable.

"Bella, talk to us. We are here for you. Does this have to do with why you came back?"Rose asked she was more observant than people gave her credit for and that made her amazing at what she did here. It was also why she could be so forward with people and they didn't mind. She saw what they didn't want, and once they knew she had seen it, they couldn't deny it. Bella just nodded her head. Then Rose said something that threw me, "Does this have to do with the marks on your back last week? The bruises?" Bella shook more. "What?" I asked, "What bruises? Rose what are you talking about, Bella didn't have any…" And Rose just looked at me. She turned Bella around like a doll and lifted her shirt just a little in the back. "Those" She said looking at me, and then turned Bella back around. I couldn't believe what I had just seen. "How did you know?" Bella asked, I was thinking the same thing to myself. Rose's answer was straight to the point. "The way you reacted to my hug that first day, how you refused to change your top in your room and you insisted on wearing that jacket, and then when Emmett hugged you I heard you cry out from it hurting. What really did it though was how Edward kept hiding your back when we were at Club 7. I figured when you were ready you would tell us."

I was floored I couldn't believe I had missed all those things, but like I said Rose is observant. Bella just cried. Rose switched the sign on the door to say closed and we walked into the office. Bella finally was able to get herself somewhat controlled and then she told us.

***RPOV***

Bella finally let it all out. And it took everything I had not to want to track this guy down and kick his ass. Then she told us there was more. My heart stopped, "Jacob Black called me to tell me that Brian took off the other day, he might be on his way here, if he isn't already here." I took her words in, she had fled him and now he was hunting her. I don't know how she got away but I was glad she did and all my anger about this was boiling up and over. Alice looked at me, because I apparently let out what could pass as a growl. "Have you told Edward? I am assuming that he knows about the abuse now, but does he know what Jacob told you?" I figured that if Edward was going to fight, then Emmett would be standing at his side, and probably Jasper as well. My family would never allow someone to be hurt, if any of us had known about what Bella had been going through for all those years in New York you bet your ass we would have brought her back here without question. I looked at her, and tried to contain my anger. She shook her head "No I tried to call him, but I just got his voice mail. Charlie is taking the children down to Billy Black's so that he can't get to them if he is here. I am so terrified. I don't want anything to happen to any of you. Charlie thinks that I shouldn't be alone and maybe I should see about staying with you all at the house." God love Charlie the man knew what he was doing. There might not be a lot of crime in Forks and the surrounding area, but he still took it seriously.

"Well that's what your ass is doing, you are not going to be alone right now!" I found myself almost yelling, Alice seemed a bit surprised by it. Alice called Esme and Carlisle and told them that Bella would be staying the weekend with us and we would explain when we got home. It seemed to not faze Esme at all. We offered to take Bella to her house to get some things for the weekend. But she insisted on going alone. She said she would meet us at home in a couple of hours. When she left, I called Edward from the store phone, Alice stood next to me while I told him we knew why Bella had returned, that she had told us and that she was staying with us for the weekend. I also told him that he needed to go by her place as soon as he finished his shift at the hospital. The rest was up to her.

***EPOV***

It had been a tough day, the only good thing is the fact that I have a date with Bella tonight. My cell phone has been acting up all day. In some parts of the hospital I get no reception but no one really ever calls me while I am here so I usually don't notice. Today my phone would start to go off and then stop, I never got a chance to check my messages but I wasn't too worried. It wasn't until I was sitting in my office reviewing some files before signing off on them for the night when my office phone rang. It only rang once when I answered "Hello this is Dr. Edward Cullen." The voice on the other end was not one I expected, "Edward we have to talk" Rosalie said very matter of fact. Rose has never been one to mettle in my personal life; that was Alice's job so something had to be up for her to be calling and sounding so serious about things. "Okay, I am listening" I responded just as serious. She didn't waste time letting me know that Bella had just left the shop and that she would be staying the weekend at the house, "Why is she doing that? She has her own home across town. What about Emily and Joseph?" The fact that she would be anywhere without them didn't seem right. "Charlie is taking them to visit the Blacks down at La Push." Rose seemed to need to tell me more but wasn't, and then it came out. "Edward, we know. Bella told us everything, after I crying her eyes out and me confronting her about the bruises. Alice is still a little shocked." I pinched the bridge of my nose, my heart broke for Bella. I knew how hard it had been for her to tell me after I had pushed for the information, so for her to just tell Rose and Alice meant something big was going on. "What else did she say?" I asked still pinching my nose, counting internally to bring my heart rate down. "All I am going to say is that you need to meet her at her place after you leave the hospital, and she will have to tell you the rest. Bring her to the house, we will get her out for the night and all figure everything out together." Rose sounded confident, and though she was serious and I had become nervous there was something about the way we would figure it all out together that made me less worried. But, there was still that awareness now, and that had me on edge.

I called Bella as I was about to reach my car in the garage. She sniffled when she answered "Hi" the awareness spiked, "Bella love what is wrong?"I asked becoming more concerned. It takes a moment, and then she says "Can you come to the house and talk? Charlie is taking the kids to Billy Black's, for the weekend, and there is something I have to tell you." She sounds sad and it worries me. "I am on my way to you. It should only take me about 20 minutes, just wait for me there at the house." I got into my car and sped out of the garage. I felt like I had to get to her as quickly as I could. It took me less time than I thought to get there, but I was doing 80mph. As I pulled in I noticed a blue jeep parked down the street, I hadn't seen it before, and for some reason it made me nervous.

I walked into the house without knocking, and called her name "Bella, where are you?" I looked in the kitchen and then went to the stairs. "Bella!" I called again. As I climbed up the stairs, I felt my chest tighten I called her name again "Bella!" I rounded into her bedroom and found her, packing a duffle bag, headphones in her ears, the music so loud I could hear it from the doorway. I stood there and watched her. She sang along to what was playing "The smell of your skin lingers on me now  
You're probably on your flight back to your home town I need some shelter of my own protection, baby To be with myself and center Clarity, peace, serenity. I hope you know, I hope you know  
That this has nothing to do with you It's personal, myself and I We've got some straightenin' out to do  
And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket But I've got to get a move on with my life  
It's time to be a big girl now And big girls don't cry Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry The path that I'm walkin', I must go alone I must take the baby steps 'til I'm full grown, full grown Fairy tales don't always have a happy ending, do they? And I foresee the dark ahead if I stay I hope you know, I hope you know That this has nothing to with you It's personal, myself and I We've got some straightenin' out to do And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket But I've got to get a move on with my life It's time to be a big girl now And big girls don't cry Like the little school mate in the school yard We'll play jacks and Uno cards I'll be your best friend and you'll be mine Valentine Yes, you can hold my hand if you want to 'Cause I want to hold yours too We'll be playmates and lovers And share our secret worlds But it's time for me to go home It's getting late, dark outside I need to be with myself, and center Clarity, peace, serenity I hope you know, I hope you know That this has nothing to do with you It's personal, myself and I We've got some straightenin' out to do And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket But I've got to get a move on with my life It's time to be a big girl now And big girls don't cry Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry" when the song was done I moved into the room and resisted the urge to pull her to me. She turned; realizing she wasn't alone let out a small scream and jumped up putting her hand on her chest when she realized it was me.

* * *

Getting to a crucial part, hope you like it.


	16. Chapter 16

* * *

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all its characters

* * *

*BPOV*

"Edward! What are you doing here? Why didn't you call me?" I was trying to catch my breath and slow down my heart which now felt like it was racing faster than Alice in her Porsche. I took several deep breathes and took my earphones off. He was smiling at me in a cocky manner that said he was planning something.

"Well I did call your name, a few times when I came in. By the way, you should lock the door when you are alone here. Not that I don't trust most of the residents of Forks, but still just for my sanity, I mean you are walking around with my heart and if anything happened to you, or the kids it would devastate me." He was still grinning that cocky grin, and then he continued on" So I hear that Rose and Alice are kidnapping you for the weekend. My question is how did I get so lucky to have you under my roof so that I don't have to leave you in the morning?"

"Um, about that. They aren't really kidnapping me, it was Charlie's idea. And there is a reason behind it." I said staring at my feet. "Edward, Jake called me this morning, he and Leah are headed here to Forks because Brian has taken off. They think that he might be here. Jake and Charlie had me fill out a restraining order. Charlie doesn't want me alone, so Rose and Alice told Esme I was staying at the house with all of you." I was twisting my hands, afraid to see his reaction, I didn't want to look him in the face and see the anger that was probably brewing because of my stupidity in thinking I would be safe coming here, and now I had put them all in danger if Brian's anger was bad enough to bring him here as well.

"Bella" Edward's voice was calm, and I heard the sound of his footsteps approach me. His hand touched my cheek, "Bella, look at me please." I raised my eyes up and looked through my eye lashes at him, "I will not let anything happen to you. I am glad that Jake and your father made you take out the restraining order. I spoke with your father about that last week. I hate that you are afraid because of it. And until there isn't a need to be afraid anymore, I am not leaving you alone. You will either be with me, Charlie or Alice and Rose. I will not take no for an answer. Tonight I am taking you out to take your mind off of things, then" I watched him grin that cocky grin again "I have other plans for you, and I will not be moving from your side until I absolutely have to."

I felt my face burn and knew that I had gone completely red. "Edward, this is serious. He could be dangerous. I don't want anyone getting hurt. Especially not you." I was ashamed of not wanting to put them in harm's way, wanting to keep them safe, and worrying that something could happen because of me.

Edward shook his head, "Silly Bella. Don't you get it? You are my life now. I will never let anyone or anything hurt you. I will do whatever is necessary to protect you and your children. Because I want to spend the rest of my life with you." With that he kissed the top of my head, and looked at the bag I was packing. "Do you have everything?" He asked getting ready to pick it up and carry it for me.

"Um, I think so. Let me just double check the bathroom and make sure I grabbed everything. You showing up kind of broke my thought process while I was packing the bag." I said feeling very silly all of a sudden that he had caught me singing and dancing in the bedroom. It was the only thing that kept me sane while my mind was reeling from the idea that Brian was on his way and going to try and force us back to New York.

"Go and get your things so that we can head out. Do you need to take anything to Charlie for the kids? We can stop by the station before heading to the house." Edward was holding my bag for me as we walked into the hallway. He looked down towards both Emily and Joey's rooms. Then he sighed. Part of me wondered if he was missing the time he would have spent with both of them this weekend. We had talked about taking them on an outing on Saturday. Edward was going to be a good father one day.

"I have a small bag already set; it is downstairs on the couch. Do you want to drive, or do you think I should take my car as well? Just in case?" I asked unsure of how wise it was to leave my car at the house. He looked at me, thinking about the question. I could tell he was as torn as I was.

"I will follow you to the station and then to the house. You can leave it there and if you need to go down to the reservation to the Black's you can. Though I would hope you would let me go with you." He was very serious and reached for my hand. I felt safe and knew that what he said he meant.

We walked down the stairs and then he stopped and grinned again, "Did you bring your IPod? Because that little performance was priceless and I would love to see that again." He chuckled at the expression on my face and pulled me in for a quick kiss. I giggled and pulled it out of my pocket.

We were just about to the door and Edward hugged me and pulled the IPod from my pocket. "Hey!" I yelled and swatted him away. "What are you doing?" He placed it in his coat pocket and laughed. I put my coat on and grabbed the bag off the couch; Edward was still holding my bag and chuckling away. "Seriously, why did you just steal my IPod?" I asked as we walked out the door and Edward checked the locks.

"I want to see what else you have on here. There might be something I want to hear you sing again, or see you dance to. I want to know what you are listening to. I know other things, and this is important to me." We walked down the steps and he walked me to my suv. "I'm following you to the station and then to the house. No other stops." He kissed me as I got in the suv and closed my door for me. Then I noticed him look down the street at something. I wasn't sure what, and his posture seemed to change when he did it. I watched him walk to his Volvo that was behind me and get in. I tried then to look and see what it was that caught his eye, but all I saw was the big oak tree he had used to climb into my window that first night. He backed out and then so did I with him following at a close distance. For a second in my rear view mirror I thought I saw a blue jeep, but I wasn't sure. I shook my head and thought I was just jumpy and over reactive, how many blue jeeps were there out there in the country, the world even. There was no way that it was Brian. He couldn't have found me at an address I had never had before. I shook my head and cleared the thought straight from my mind.

When we got to the police station Charlie was waiting for me, "Hey Bells." He sounded a little better than he had before. Maybe he had cooled down; maybe murder was no longer on his mind. "I need to talk with Dr. Cullen for a few moments. Why don't you wait out here, Sue will be by with Em and Joey in a little bit. I know you will want to see them before she heads down to La Push. Jacob faxed some papers from the airport in Port Angeles as well. He and Leah will be down to the Reservation in a couple of hours. You might want to look those over as well. "He held his arm up to direct Edward into his office, and then closed the door. I felt like I was in trouble and waiting outside the principal's office. I took the papers he had handed me and sat down at the front desk. I could at least look like I was useful right now.

My gaze went outside and again I thought I saw a blue jeep. I must be going crazy; it has to be the stress from the day that is making me see things. Or I really am jumping to conclusions. Jake never said either way if Brian had driven out of town or flown. He had never been to Forks with me, and because of everything that happened when I had left I rarely talked about it. It couldn't be him, I looked out again, and the jeep was gone. "It's all in your head." I told myself and went back to the papers in front of me.

It had been about ten minutes when the door to the station opened and I looked up to see Sue and my two children. "MOMMY!" Emily screamed in total excitement. "Sue got me ice cream!" And she came up close so I could see her chocolate stained face. I laughed, and pulled a napkin from my drawer and began to wiper her clean. "It was so yummy!" I loved how excited she got about little things; I couldn't help but smile and hug her. "Joey had some too. Sue gave it to him." She said with no cares at all. I laughed and looked up at Sue who had a look of betrayal. "But I'm not supposed to tell you that he had it. Okay?" Again I laughed.

"Okay. I won't tell if you don't." I said to her as I leaned my forehead against hers. "Hey pumpkin, how would you like to spend some time with Grandpa Charlie and Sue? You could visit the beach, and go fishing and see Jake and Leah. What do you say; do you think it would be fun?" I asked knowing that she loved adventures and that was how she would look at it. Not to mention that she adored Jake so seeing him would make it all worthwhile in her mind.

"Can I?" she asked sounding as if I was offering her a present. "Will Joey go with me? I like my baby brother. He's my friend. Jake's my friend too. But Grandpa Charlie is my grandpa not my friend. Can Alec and Jane come play with Jake too?" Her eyes were wide with hope. I tried to process each question and answer her.

"Well pumpkin, you can go for the whole weekend, and Joey can go too. But I need you to be a helper and keep an eye on him like I know you can because you are such a great big sister. Yes Jake is your friend and Grandpa Charlie is your grandpa, I think next time Alec and Jane can come, but I will ask their mommy and daddy if they can visit you while you are there with Grandpa and Jake. Okay?" I was preparing mentally for the question of whether I was going or not. But she seemed so excited about it all that she never asked. Instead she gave Sue and ear full about Jake and being a big sister.

After twenty minutes Edward and Charlie came out of the office, they shook hands and Emily did something that shocked us all, myself more than anyone, "Grandpa Charlie! Edward! I missed you!" she ran toward them both and threw herself into Edward's arms. He hugged her and set her back on the ground at which point she took both of their hands and walked back over to the front desk.

We spent another thirty minutes at the station Sue and I played up the trip to the Reservation with Charlie while Emily colored several pictures for Charlie, Edward and myself. Edward promised to hang his in his office at the hospital and Emily asked about visiting him there sometime. He and I were both surprised. "She has never acted like that toward her father. I don't know what to say." He just smiled and hugged me to him.

When it was time for Sue to take Emily and Joey down to La Push, we all walked out together. Charlie rode with Sue; I still couldn't get over how fast he had gotten car seats for her. I put my two babies into Sue's car and buckled them in. I had never been separated from them like this, and it was unbelievably hard. It was at this point that Emily put it together that I was not going with them. In her two year old way she questioned me, "Mommy coming too?" I tried to smile at her while I strapped her into the car seat. What was I going to say? Edward spoke for me.

"Emmy, mommy has to work. That is why Grandpa Charlie and Sue are taking for an adventure to see Jake and Leah and the pretty beach. And as soon as she can she will come and see everything with you. Do you think you could find some pretty shells at the beach for me to take to the hospital so I can put them next to my picture?" The way he talked to her was amazing, she nodded in response to him, seeming to take on the mission of finding him something special that only she could. That he had entrusted her with a vital mission, she reached over took Joey's hand and smiled at Edward.

"I a good girl. Joey and I find something for you. Jake and Grandpa Charlie will help." She beamed from ear to ear. I knew that she would be okay for the weekend. Charlie squeezed my shoulder then hugged me. He turned to Edward, and they shook hands. I raised an eyebrow in question at Edward. He just smiled at me.

"Now remember you remember what we discussed. Keep her safe Edward. If you don't, well you don't want to think about what will happen." Charlie spoke with a tone that made me fear for Edward. He nodded in agreement. I made a mental note to ask Edward what they had spoken about for so long, but part of me was sure that he would never fully tell me.

Once Sue and Charlie pulled out and down the road, Edward turned to me "Are you ready to go?" I couldn't get the words out; I was still watching Sue's car drive down the street away from me. I would spend my first weekend away from my babies. I was not sure how I was supposed to feel about this. The tears filled my eyes. I tried to repress a sniffle that I could feel coming as well. Edward was aware of it all and he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me to him, hugging me to his chest. "It's okay love. They will be safe with Charlie, and in a couple of days they will be home with you again. Charlie knows what he is doing. I wouldn't trust anyone one else to protect them right now. Just as he trusts me with you. Now let's get to the house and see what my sister has planned." He kissed the top of my head and gave me one final squeeze before leading me to my car.

I was about to get in when I noticed his attention had gone elsewhere. I looked down the street to see what he was looking at again. But I saw nothing. "What is it? That's twice today, you are making me nervous." I asked still looking in the direction he had been. I looked up at him waiting for his response. He toyed with his keys, then a strand of my hair.

"Nothing, it was nothing. Now let's get to the house. I'm sure everyone there is dying for the slumber party to begin." It was a half hearted comment, and I wasn't sure if it was because he was nervous himself or if he was disappointed that Alice and Rose would be trying to steal me away the whole weekend. Reluctantly he walked around to his Volvo and got in. As I drove I kept my eyes on him in the rearview mirror and I kept looking for the blue jeep that I felt was haunting my mind. What would I do if he was actually here?

* * *

Thank you for the idea iwannabegilmore, I hope this is better.


	17. Chapter 17

* * *

**Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and its characters**

***EPOV***

I needed to just get Bella back to the house, where I knew she would be safe. Not just because of the high tech security system the house had, but because my brothers and I would be there. No one was going to get passed us. I would not allow it.

I hated that I made her uneasy, but seeing that blue jeep twice was getting to feel like more than just a coincidence. I had to take my mind off of it; I knew that I would make her more scared if I wasn't clear headed. I plugged her IPod into my adapter and pressed play. I scanned through a few songs laughing that she even had these on here. I got to a couple of good ones, and then I got to some classical stuff. Always and never the same, that was my Bella. I listened to a couple more and noted that the jeep was gone. I was relieved that it wasn't following us anymore. I scanned more, she had some soundtracks. I laughed hard when I got to tracks from a chic flick that Alice and Rose had gone to see together, I remembered them clamoring on about some perfect guy who was apparently a 108 year old vampire who fell in love with a teenage girl. I couldn't remember what it was called but Bella would not hear the end of this from me.

We finally arrived to the private road that led up to our house. I scanned through the songs again, stopping on an old Del Amitri song. I listened to it as I followed her slowly up the road. I listened to the words of the song, and it hit home with everything from our past.

Tell her not to go  
I ain't holding on no more  
Tell her something in my mind freezes up from time to time

Tell her not to cry  
I just got scared that's all  
Tell her I'll be by her side, all she has to do is call

Tell her the chips are down  
I drank too much and shouted it aloud  
Tell her something in my heart  
Needs her more than even clowns need the laughter of the crowd

Tell her what was wrong  
I sometimes think too much  
But say nothing at all  
And tell her from this high terrain, I am ready now to fall

Tell her not to go  
I ain't holding on no more  
Tell her nothing if not this; all I want to do is kiss her

Tell her something in my mind  
Freezes up from time to time.

It was perfect to describe how I had felt that night when I climbed into her window and found her gone. The next song after that; was way left field in comparison and I made note to have this one on hold for the next time she was dancing around a room. All too soon we were pulling into the drive way. I made Bella pull into my spot in the garage so that if anyone came looking for her, they wouldn't be able to find her based on her car.

*BPOV*

We arrived at the Cullen home and I was again overwhelmed by memories of the past and then the thought of all that was happening now. But before I could think too much on it Alice came bounding out of the door that lead into the house from the garage. For some reason Edward made me pull into what used to be his spot. Alice was followed out by Esme and Carlisle. As usual she was bouncing, full of her pixie energy. As soon as I got out of my SUV I was wrapped in a hug by Alice and then by both Edward's parents. He stood back and just watched as they welcomed me into their home much like they used to. Edward grabbed my bag and followed us into the house. Jasper was sitting at the kitchen table looking at a book on facts about the civil war. He stood to greet me with a hug as well, and I felt at peace, I don't know why but just being around Jasper always made me feel calmer. He just had that effect on people.

"Bella, how are you?" Jasper asked while embracing me. I sighed, feeling all my worries seem to melt away.

"Oh Jasper, I think I am going to do okay. Well actually, I have been better. But things are hopefully looking up." I felt silly telling Jasper this, and then I looked at him and asked "So, what's the pixie got planned? Since I'm here for the weekend." We both laughed. And it felt good. I missed laughing like this. I looked over at Edward, who stood there with that crocked grin. Suddenly I felt like I was 16 again, just admiring him standing against the kitchen counter, looking like he knew my thoughts, like he was trying to read me. I blushed.

"Well, I think she has plans for all of us tonight. Chances are once Edward lets you out of his sight she will do an Alice Makeover on you, and then drag us all out somewhere to escape the madness for the night. Tomorrow when you just want to sleep in, she will do the manicure pedicure thing that she and Rose always have planned. I don't think she will allow you a free moment to worry, or even think about missing your two little ones." He smiled, and winked over at Alice. "Speaking of, I have heard a great deal about them, but when do I get to meet them? I think Emmett and I are the only ones who haven't so far."

I blushed more, feeling horrible for that "Jasper Hale, I promise that I will bring them over during the week to meet you." As I started to turn a way I stopped, and looked back at him "So Alice told you? All of it?" I felt the blush darken. At some point they were going to find out. But I hated that it was this way.

Jasper didn't answer, another voice did. "We know enough. And we are here for you Bella. You are family you always have been. We protect our family." Carlisle spoke in a manner that told me they would go to war for me. Before I could say anything, Edward was insisting on taking me and my things upstairs, to get settled and so that I could call Charlie and talk to my children.

"Really I think she needs to talk to them before Alice and Rose play Bella Barbie." He said to no one in particular as he walked me up to where his room was. And then he stopped in the hallway. "Okay. I'm, don't freak out about this. We aren't staying in my room, um; this is your room or our room, whatever you so choose. But Charlie, or rather Chief Swan told me I was never to let you out of my sight. So that means 24 hour protection." He wiggled an eyebrow and smiled that crocked grin. And then he opened the door to the room Esme had shown me.

We walked in, and he placed my bag on the bed. I looked around and then walked over to the wall where the painting hung. "I love it." I said referring to it all. Edward chuckled. I turned looking at him very seriously. "What? Why are you laughing?" I felt like a child staying at their first hotel. He just shook his head.

"I love how you get so excite about things. Look I am going to grab a couple of things for myself. If you hear a pixie, hide." He chuckled as he walked out of the room.

I giggled, and decided to call Charlie's cell. Edward returned while I was pacing the room waiting for Charlie to answer. "Hello?" His voice sounded a bit tired. And he had only been with the two of them just over an hour.

"Hey dad, how are my babies?" I asked still pacing the room. Edward had sat down on the bed and just watched me. I talked a little bit with Charlie, telling him that Edward made me park in the garage, and that everyone knew what was going on. He told me that Jake and Leah had stopped at the courthouse in Port Angeles to have some papers notarized. As soon as I signed them as well I would be divorced. The judge back in New York had been against domestic abuse, and Leah had pressed that I fled for fear of the lives of my children and myself. With the pictures of my bruises and character witnesses that Jake and Leah had found everything was pushed through. Apparently the day before he took off Brian was notified that the divorce would be final once I signed, and that I got sole custody of the children. He apparently assaulted the process server who was just doing his job, and had gotten Brian to sign the papers before telling him everything. The process server was pressing charges against him, and because of all of this Brian was considered extremely dangerous.

I must have gone completely white because Edward looked concerned. I spoke to Emily for a couple of minutes and then told Joey that I loved him. Charlie told me Jake and Leah would be in touch in the morning. I told Charlie to I loved him and to take care of my babies. I was preparing to hang up when he said something I wasn't expecting. "I want to talk to Edward."

I stopped pacing and looked at him, "okay, he's right here, hang on." I cleared my throat "Charlie wants to talk to you." Edward just looked confused taking the phone from me.

"Yes sir, of course. Yes. Yes. I will sir. I promise you, I won't let anything happen to her. Yes sir, more than you will ever know. I will have her call you again later. Yes. Thank you Charlie." He never faltered while talking to Charlie, and when he raised his eyebrow at me and smiled that cocky smile I knew they were up to something. Edward hung up the phone and handed it back to me.

"What was that all about?" I asked a bit concerned and confused. Edward just smiled, and then chuckled.

"Oh nothing." Was all he said. I sensed that something was definitely up and then there was a knock at the door.

We both looked at it when we heard Alice's voice say, "Bella. We need to get you ready for tonight. Rose and I are giving you two minutes before we break this door down!" I was almost afraid because of the tone in her voice. Edward grabbed my hand and dragged me to the closet.

"Quick, there is a mad pixie at the door hide with me so she doesn't find you and try to steal you away!" He chuckled.

Alice must have been able to hear him because she huffed and called out "Rose! I need your help with this door!" The next thing I knew Edward had me pinned against the wall in the closet kissing me to keep me quiet. Alice's voice sounded like she was outside the closet now "I know you are in there, and we need to get ready for tonight. You seriously need a night out. And if you don't come out of there, I will come in after you!"

Edward leaned his head against mine and whispered "You better hurry back to me." He kissed my hand and then my forehead before opening the closet door and letting me step out.

I looked back at him, and said "I promise."

* * *

**I apologize again for this taking so long to update, I finally got the file to transfer. I hope to have the next chapter up in the next day or so. I hope this one was okay. **

* * *


	18. Chapter 18

**

* * *

*****APOV***

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and characters

* * *

"Okay so here's the plan. We are going out, and I will not take no for an answer. We are all go, and you are going to have fun and take your mind off of all the negative things. And if you don't I will remind my dear brother of how horribly ticklish you are and that will make you laugh until you cry." I was in the process of beginning my make over session with Bella when Rose knocked on the bathroom door and came in.

"Do you have tonight's wardrobe?" I knew she would, we had discussed things after Rose talked to Edward. On our way out of the shop Rose pulled a couple of things to sample on Bella for the weekend. Edward may be head over heels for her, but we played to seal the deal for the two of them. And making Bella look unforgettable was how we planned to do it. My hardheaded brother had been in love with his best friend since grade school but was too stupid to tell her, so Rose and I were going to make sure he finally got it right. Lord knows we had been trying for years before we went separate ways for college.

"Hell yeah I got it. Bella my dear you are going to look like the hottest mother of two out there, well that is next to me." Rose said with a smile. She held up the clothes and Bella's jaw dropped.

"I can't wear that!" She said in a raised voice but clearly making sure not to yell so Edward her protector wouldn't come running.

"Oh yes you can darling, and you are going to. Either that or a mini and thigh high boots." Rose cocked an eyebrow and you could see the defeat wash across Bella. "That's what I thought!"

Rose hung the clothes up on the shower rod and left the bathroom, she was going to make sure the guys were all ready to go and downstairs so that we would be a surprise, especially Bella.

Rose had planned it all out, back in high school we had always done the triplet thing for homecoming, Halloween those kinds of things, so she decided we should do it one more time, sort of. Rose picked out the same tie at the neck halter top in different colors (purple for me, red for Rose, and blue for Bella) we would all be wearing form fitting leather pants, and black boots. It was going to be a fun night, and one that Edward would thank us for in years to come.

***UPOV***

I didn't need to see the driver to figure out who it was. Edward. I knew the name, almost as well as she did. I had heard that name countless times when she slept, dreamt of him while she was lying next to me. I hated him. I hated him more than anyone else in the world. Edward. I had never seen him in person, though I did see an old photo that Bella had in a scrapbook from high school. She never spoke of growing up, or her home town and I figured that he had something to do with him.

As I watched him walk into the house where my wife was now staying, I felt my hate seething through me. How was I going to convince her to come home with him here? "Damn it!" I pounded the steering wheel of my jeep with clenched fists.

I sat there and watched the house, much like I had all day, waiting for her. She was mine, I had claimed her, marked her, no one else would have her. I would be sure of that. After several minutes they came out of the house. He was carrying a bag, where were they going?

I watch him follow her to her Escape, I can't see the driver's side. I know the scent of her SUV, she has a small bottle of perfume she keeps in the console. I can smell it from memory. She thinks she can just leave me. Not in this lifetime.

I follow them down the road. I know better than to be too close. Eight years as an Army sniper taught me plenty, and to not be seen is one of the things I was trained. They arrive at the police station. How am I supposed to talk to her while she is there? "SHIT! GOD DAMN IT!" I remember Jacob that dog and his bitch Leah telling me that Bella would file a restraining order, restrain me from my wife. I don't fucking think so. I will have to teach Bella that she needs to respect me better. She always requires these lessons for her to understand that I am in charge. She vowed to honor and obey me, and I would make her do just that.

What feels like hours goes by and they don't come out. I am sure I saw some native bitch walk in with my children. "What the fuck is going on?" I want to just go in there and drag her out by her fucking hair. But I think better of it, he is in there, and I am sure that Edward will try to stop me. But what he doesn't get is that she is mine. I will show him, and her. Mine.

They finally exit the building. Bella is putting the children in the older bitches car, she looks like a mutt to me. My window is down while I smoke my cigarette and I swear I smell wet dog in the air. I see that bastard touch my wife. Everything in me wants to rip his fucking arm off. He looks in my direction. "Yeah that's right, I'm right here asshole. What are you doing to do about it?"

I figure she is going to follow the car with the children, I get ready to follow her, but that fucking silver Volvo pulls in behind her. As they go through the center of town I lose track of the car the kids were in, and Bella doesn't seem to be following it. "Where are you going to baby?" A Mustang cuts me off, two sexy looking women are in it. I am tempted to follow them. I could use a good time, and any woman who drives a Mustang like that, well she definitely must be into good times as well. I smile as I feel the twitch from my pants. Or maybe I will have Bella make it up to me. Yeah, that's what I will do. I watch the Mustang drive off down another street and get stuck at a red light. I look up and realize that I lost both Bella's Escape, and that damn silver Volvo. "Fuck!" When the light changes I head in the direction they were going when I last say the Volvo. Nothing, great. I decide to head back to the dump of a motel that I am staying at. Maybe later I will grab a beer and do some nosing around town. I figure someone around this small town will be able to tell me something about Bella and that Edward. Maybe I will find his address, if that is where she is well then two birds with one stone. I'll take back my wife after I destroy this asshole that is trying to take my wife from me. She. Is. Mine. Mine damn it. I'll prove it to both of them.

***EPOV***

I stood looking out the window of my bedroom, it looked out to the backyard, to a forest and stream that normally were very peaceful. Right now, I worried that he could be out there waiting for Bella to let her guard down. There was a knock at the door, I knew that Alice and Rose would be holding Bella captive until the last minute before we left. "Yeah?" I said figuring it was one of three people, Carisle, Jasper or Emmett. Esme knocked and usually said my name as she did so.

The door openned and in walked both Jasper and Emmett. Sometimes I was thankful for having these two by my side. They could be pretty scary at times, especially Emmett that man looked more like a grizzly bear when he was angry. Jasper that this air about him that made you think he was calm all the time, but when someone or something threatened Alice or her happiness and he was an unstoppble man. I thought of how this man had hurt Bella and looking at my two "brothers" I knew that I wouldn't stand for her to be hurt again, and that they saw her as family, a sister and they would do for her what they would do for both Alice and Rosalie. I looked at them and saw that they knew, they sensed that something was up. So I asked Emmett to shut the down, "I have to tell you two something, it's about Bella. I'm not sure what she has told Rose and Alice. Or that they have informed you of, but I need to tell you both everything I can." I put it all out there. Everything Bella had told me. Then I added what she wasn't tell me. "I'm pretty sure I saw his car. She had a picture of Emily by it up on the mantel. I saw it a couple of times today. I think he is here, and I think he might be dumb enough, crazy enough to try something. Charlie expects me to protect her, I can't do it alone. I need your help."

They had both been quiet while I talked, I looked at them and saw what could have been my own reflection. Saw it in their eyes, Bella was family to them, always had been since we were five. Emmett without looking at Jasper spoke for both of them. "Let 'im come. He will have to get through us if he even wants to look at her. He'll never touch her."

Jasper knodded his head in agreement. The three of us quietly planned for everything. I didn't trust taking Bella out, but I knew that if Alice set her mind to it, it was going to happen. I also didn't want Bella scared to the point that she would never leave her house. Especially if she worried that he was out there. Before we left I sought out Carisle. I needed to let him know what I was suspicious of, I didn't want harm coming to anyone in my family if this lunatic got it in his head that he was coming for Bella. I went to his study and knocked on the door.

'Yes?" Came his calm, soothing voice. I walked into the study and he looked up at me. "You look like you have something to tell me. And I have the feeling that it is not good news. Does it have to do with Bella son?" He sat with his hands folded on top of his desk. I looked at him and then glanced quickly around the room while I thought of how to tell him. Before I could open my mouth to get out the thought that I had finally put together he spoke again. "Edward, Chief Swan, yes I am going to referr to him as the Chief of Police right now, called me. He and I had a long talk about a citizen he is concerned about. As the head of the local hospital he felt I should be aware of the hard that had befallen this citizen before they came to Forks. He is afraid that harm might come to them again, and he wanted me to be on guard for it. Incase this citizen were to decide not to go to the hospital for any reason. And you know what else, son? After I finished with Chief Swan, I talked to Charlie. You know Bella's father. He said that you would come to me to let me know, but father to father he had to tell me. And then Charlie told me about what happened to his daughter for several years. As a father I agreed to help him in whatever manner I could. Since I look at his daughter as my own somedays, I felt I couldn't deny this to him. And now my son stands before me, I am sure to tell me about the woman he loves. Edward I can understand the hate you have for this man. I felt it myself, has does Charlie. Just promise me that you won't forget who you are." He said in a somber manner.

I knodded, "Of course dad. Thank you for understanding." I headed for the door. Then turned back "Um, Dad?" I began unsure of myself. "Um, well. When this is all over and done with. I want to ask Bella to marry me. I already talked to Charlie about this, he gave his blessing, will you give your's too?"

* * *

Sorry it took me so long to update. I have just been so fried lately. Thanks for reading this.


	19. Chapter 19

* * *

**Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and the characters**

*BPOV*

It took Alice and Rose over an hour to get me ready, and then about ten minutes to get themselves ready for the evening. I have to admit I did look pretty good for a mother of two; I looked pretty good for just being me when it comes right down to it. Alice surveyed her work and smiled.

"I do good work don't I?" Alice said with a smile. "You do give me something easy to work with; I wish you would do this yourself though. You would feel so much better each day if you took a few minutes to spoil yourself." Rose nodded her head in agreement.

"Bella, you are a M.I.L.F. Edward is going to fighting to keep guys away from you tonight, and if he has it his way, the rest of your life. He told Emmett if you asked he would move out of here and in with you just so he could be with you more." Rose smiled at me so sure that everything was going to work out just fine.

The three of us walked downstairs to where the guys were waiting, Emmett had conned Jasper into a game of Call of Duty while they were waiting and Edward was looking on and laughing at both of them. I suddenly was reminded of all the time we spent together when we were younger. It was so easy then, and all I wanted was Edward to notice me. We were inseparable and I always thought it was so obvious that I loved as more than just my best friend. Watched and thought of all the times I had wished that Brian and his friends playing or goofing around were these three. I never felt at home with any of them like I did here. I never fit in. Emmett and Jasper finished the level they were on and looked up when Alice couched ever so obviously from the door way.

All of a sudden three pairs of eyes and three mouths were wide. Rose laughed and as she turned to grab her wallet for the evening she said over her shoulder "Boys mop up the drool on your way out to the cars, and when you are done put your tongues back in your mouths." Alice and I turned to follow her and there were three whistles in a row as we walked away. The three of us smiled at each other. Clearly the effect Rose was going for worked.

As we stood at the door waiting for the three of them I heard Emmett say to Edward "Seriously. You better not let her out of your sight. Something like that could be dangerous out there. I mean geez, I know how hot Rose is for a mother of two but man, Edward, Bella is basically a free agent right now. If you don't claim her right, then some other dude is going to see that M.I.L…"He suddenly stopped as he looked up and saw us still standing there, probably expecting that we had gone out to the cars. Edward smacked him in the back of the head. "Ouch, dude really one of these days, I'm going to do that back to you and put an end to it."

I could feel the blush over taking my whole body. I was ready and everything felt like it was on fire. It was worse than being 16 again and hearing Emmett tell Edward that someone like Mike Newton was going to try "tappin' that" whenever Alice and Rose played Bella Barbie. I realized that Rose, Alice and Jasper were laughing, and I couldn't help but start to laugh as well.

"Emmett thanks for thinking I'm as hot as Rose." I said as I gave him a quick peck on the cheek. Edward grabbed my hand as everyone walked out into the garage to decide which car/cars we were taking into town to the small local bar. Edward pulled me back toward him, causing us to remain in the kitchen for a couple of seconds.

"I think you are far hotter than Rose. As for Emmett's comment about you being a well you know, that I won't argue with." He whispered in my ear, his breath was hot against my skin and caused goose bumps to breakout along with the extreme blush that covered my body.

We walked out to the cars, it was decided that we would ride in Emmett's Rubicon, since he really wanted to show it off. Rose sat up front with him, and Edward, Jasper, Alice and I squeezed in back. Alice more or less sat on Jasper's lap like they would have back in high school. I laughed and shook my head at the two of them. Some things just never changed. We had thought that Emmett was just going into town, but then he turned off and got on the highway and headed toward Seattle.

"Emmett, where are we going?" I asked. Alice and Rose had said a night out, nothing major. I was getting nervous. I had never really been big on the club scene back in New York. Emmett didn't answer me. He just said Edward's name, and then something that sounded like French. Edward responded with what sounded like an agreement, then Rose touched Emmett's arm and said something as well.

"Okay, you all remember that I didn't take French in school right? So is there are reason you are talking so that I can't understand you?" I was trying my best not to be annoyed or nervous about this. But something in me felt like something was going on. Edward ran his fingers along my arm and then commented.

"Emmett thought he remembered there was something going on at Miller Creek in town, so he figured it had been a long time since any of us had been to Trinity in Seattle. He wanted it to be a surprise. It offers more selection as well." He squeezed my hand; I wanted to believe him so I just nodded. I caught Jasper nod to Edward. I was sure that something was up now. The way Emmett drove, was the same as Edward and the rest, we were to Seattle in no time, or at least half of what it would have taken me to get there. We made our way through downtown and to a parking garage. Emmett refused to park on the street. We walked the short distance to the building that housed Trinity and saw the line to get in.

Bouncers were surveying the crowd and picking and choosing who would enter and who just didn't cut it. As we approached one of them shouted out to Emmett, they clapped hands and then did a sort of male approved hug. Emmett laughed with the two bouncers for a minute and the next thing I knew we were ushered in and told the first round was on the house. I looked at Edward confused.

"While at school Emmett played football with most of the guys that end up bouncing at the night clubs around here. Emmett had a lot of offers as well; I mean he's a tough guy. But when he found out about the twins, he turned them all down. He teaches Phys Ed at the high school and coaches the football and baseball teams so that he is taking care of his family and doing what he loves. Whenever the girls want to go out, Emmett gets everyone in because of his old football buddies." He said as he guided me through the dark corridor and into a massive room that was back lighted red with multicolored spot lights everywhere.

"There are three other 'rooms' so if this is too much let me know." Edward said against my ear, the goose bumps returned, and I just smiled at him. Alice grabbed my hand she and Rose dragged me out on to the dance floor while the guys headed to the bar. We weren't alone long, soon there were a couple of guys that approached us and were asking Rose and Alice to dance. Both held up their left hands and flashed their rings, most took the hint and walked off looking for single women to hit on instead. I laughed at how neither of them reacted to the strangers at all. I finally felt myself letting go and just enjoying being with my friends, my family really. The DJ was mixing songs and kept people on the dance floor the whole time. After about the fifth round of guys approaching us, Rose huffed and signaled to Alice to leave. Alice again grabbed my hand and dragged me along. I looked around for Edward and the others but didn't see them at all.

We entered a room smaller but still huge by all standards and that was completely blue with white accents. I felt like I was in an old James Bond movie in here, but it was interesting. There was a different DJ in this room but the energy was that same. We found our way to the dance floor again. We hadn't been approached my any drunken jokers for awhile and so I began to relax more and enjoy being out and having fun with my friends. But as soon as I let me guard down, I should have known something would happen.

We were dancing to a mix of Muse when an arm came around my waist, at first I thought nothing of it, just kept on dancing assuming it was Edward and his brothers finally joining us. I froze in place when I looked down and saw the wedding band on the hand that was on my hip pulling me closer to the man it belonged to. It was supposed to be a unique ring, so how could someone else have it. My mouth went dry. I stood in place and looked up at Alice before starting to turn around. When I stopped the hand left my hip, I turned to look at who was behind me swallowing the lump that had formed ever so quickly in my throat. There was no one there, whoever it was had moved away and with the crowd now forming I couldn't tell if it had been him. A hand touched my shoulder and I gasped and spun around. Alice looked at me like I had two heads.

"I need to sit down for a minute." I told her and she signaled to Rose. Rose lead us to a white couch that was unoccupied and we sat for a few minutes. My eyes scanned the room for any sign of Edward, Jasper or Emmett. Alice caught me and smiled. She didn't ask about the guy who had tried to dance with me, did they not see him? Was I just paranoid?

"Bella they are probably talking with a bartender or bouncer they know. Those three seem to know everyone some days. Don't worry." Alice was someone I would never bet against, but I still had that uneasy feeling from the car ride. I thought I would try and get out of her or Rose what had been discussed.

"So why did Emmett and Edward have to discuss coming here in French? It would have still been a surprise since I hadn't been here before?" I was trying not to be obvious that I didn't believe them, but it was beginning to bother me more and more.

"Bella, there are times in life when Emmett and Edward actually know what they are doing and it is best not to question it. It's rare, but when it happens. Well those are the times you need to let them handle things because they are going to handle it no matter what you say or do. Do you understand me at all?" Rose said it very matter of fact, she meant for me to not ask again, not to question anymore. And that made me even more nervous, because in my mind there would only be one reason why Emmett and Edward would behave like that.

"Rose, tell me honestly. We were being followed? Edward seemed to be seeing something today that I wasn't. I have been scared all day about Brian showing up, and Edward's behavior isn't helping me. Just tell me. Please." I felt like I couldn't let it go. I had to know, because not knowing was going to drive me insane.

Before she could answer a new round of guys approached us, "Hey ladies, you look pretty alone here, mind if we join you?" There were three of them, each had a drink in their hand they seemed polite but after the round of admirers on the dance floor and our conversation Rose had no tolerance for them.

"Listen, our husbands would mind if you joined us so why don't you move along." She snapped. My eyes widened, I don't think I had ever seen her like this. "Come on, let's go. Before Emmett and Jasper decide to come over and break this up."She turned to Alice and the three of us stood up even though the three men were still in front of where we were sitting.

"How about you beautiful? Would your husband mind?" I realized he was talking to me, looking at the nonexistent ring on my finger. A sneer came across his face, and as I began to respond and Alice pulled me away he grabbed my arm. "You forget to wear your ring tonight?"

I yanked my hand away from him, "Let go of me." He grinned wider, I felt like I had seen him before but I couldn't place it. My gut was telling me this wasn't a pick up line. He reached for me again his friends laughing as Rose and Alice were trying to move us away from them.

"Spence, maybe she didn't forget it maybe she didn't want to wear it so we would think she was single. Those two bitches clearly aren't prowling, maybe this tasty dish is?" said one of his buddies that had only been snickering up until now. As I turned to walk away with Alice and Rose now, the one called Spence grabbed my arm with much more force. He had mousey brown hair that was kept very short. Something about him reminded me of when Brian was in the Army. My mind was racing with questions, my gut telling me that I was a target not a pick up gone wrong.

"Let go of me right now!" I yelled looking him square in the eye. I was tired of being bullied and man handled like I didn't have a say in the matter. I stared him down and finally after what felt like an hour, but was only a matter of a minute he released my arm. It was throbbing and I was sure there was going to be a mark.

"Got a little spitfire here guys I love when a woman is feisty. Don't you?" Spence said to his group of friends. I was so focused on him that I missed a new member join his group. I wanted this man to know that I was not going to be pushed around or bullied by him, that I would stand my ground, at the moment it seemed like such a good idea. And then in the blink of an eye it all went to hell.

*APOV*

These three guys seemed to be targeting Bella, and we didn't know why. Nothing that they were saying to her made any sense. That was unless you knew the background of her current situation, which they didn't they couldn't. While Bella was having her standoff with the jerk named Spence, another guy seemed to join the group hovering around. I tried to get closer to her, I still had her hand and I squeezed it so that she would know that I was still there. She seemed oblivious to me now.

"Rose, we have a major problem here." I said as I caught sight of the fourth man who seemed to be closing the circle in around Bella. His movements were deliberate; he was headed toward her with a look of determination on his face. Something triggered in my brain. I knew him, I knew him without having to be told who he was. I saw it all as if it had already happened. It was Bella's Ex, and he was after her. Somehow he found her here, and he had set her up for this moment.

"Rose, it's him!" I yelled to her. She was sending Emmett a message. Hopefully they three of them would be on their way to us in seconds. I tugged on Bella's arm. She tried to shake me off. She was so focused on the one named Spence that she had no clue what was going on around her. The shark was circling, and I didn't know how the hell I was going to get her out.

"Back off ass jack!" Rose yelled stepping in to one side of Bella protecting her back. I took the other side if anyone was going to get to Bella they were clearly going to have to deal with the two of us as well. Little did we know the hell that would follow that statement.

*RPOV*

Bella went from her nervous worry wart self to growing a pair in a matter of moments. I couldn't believe what I had just witness. She was like a woman possessed. Alice saw the reason for this jerk distracting her almost instantly.

"Rose, it's him!" She yelled to me. I didn't have to look to know, and Bella had never told us what he looked like. Never sawed us a single picture, but there standing, slinking rather to her right side was a much older version of Joey with dark almost greasy hair. I sent Emmett a message, because I knew calling was pointless in here.

_SOS Blue Rm NOW! B's X here. _

Without thinking I moved from where I had been standing to her right side. "Back off ass jack!" I yelled to him has he slinked his way like a snake toward her. Alice took her other side, we were family and until the guys got here to take care of this, we would take care of our own.

*UPOV*

It was easier than I expected it to be. I walked into the local bar in town and ordered a beer. I sat and listened to the conversations around me. Someone was talking about a doc Cullen who had taken care of his daughter. The guy he was with asked if it was the old man or the son.

"It was Edward. Man it is so hard to think about the fact that just a matter of years ago we were all in school together, and now he caring for my girl after she breaks her arm." He is about my age, though he looks tired, like he hasn't slept in days.

I head back to my dive a motel pretty damn happy that I didn't even have to try on this one. I grab the phone book and look the name up. I laugh when I get to the section with the Cullen's name

_Cullen, Dr. Carsile and Esme_

_Cullen, Dr. Edward_

_Cullen, Emmett and Rosalie_

The phone numbers were all different, but the address was the same. This had to be a joke. They couldn't all live together could they? It didn't matter. I looked up the address and drove out toward the house. I figured I would just check it out, see if that was where she was or not. And with my luck, as I came around, a monster Rubicon pulled out of a hidden road. It looked to be packed with people, and I took the chance and followed it. A little over an hour later I was entering Seattle. I doubted they knew I had been following them. They entered a club without much effort.

"Figures she would whore herself up for him. Probably the only reason he is even interested in her right now. Now how the hell am I going to get in there?" I looked at the line. Clearly you needed to know someone to get in, and most of the guys standing in line looked like pansies. I knew I had my night club attire that I kept in the car for when I used to go out with my buddies back in New York. It was ridiculous that clubs required you to dress a certain way, I mean half the time you got the girl out to the car and the clothes were off. I pulled into the garage around the block and changed quickly before anyone could see me. Sprayed on some Axe and was on my way to find a sexy girl to get into the club with.

As I approached the line, someone called out my name. "Can this night get any better? Spence, what the hell are you doing here?" One of my former buddies from the Army was standing with two other guys about to enter the club.

"He's with us." He told the bouncer who let me enter with them. "Hey this is my buddy from the 770th back in NY. Fucker got my ass through some serious shit when we were overseas." He clapped a hand on my shoulder and then asked the obvious question. "What the hell are you doing out here fucker? Thought you and the wife were spawning?" He laughed and so did his two friends. I laughed too, they could come in handy for me tonight.

"Yeah well we had a difference of opinion. She thought she could leave, and I didn't. So here I am to claim what is mine because her ass is parading around like she is single." I followed them to the bar and scanned the room. The guys had left them, gone to the opposite end of the bar to watch them and talk to each other. She was dancing with two very hot women. They looked almost like the two from earlier in the mustang. The thought of the three of them together made me hard. I elbowed Spence and pointed to them. We watched as several guys approached them. The two held up their hands and guys walked away. Soon they seemed too tired of it and started to walk toward another room.

"I have an idea man." Spence said with a grin. I watched the three of them, and then looked for where the three guys they came with were. I nodded to Spence.

"I'm all ears. Tell me because I think I am going to like it." I said with a grin. He spoke and then we followed them into the Blue Room. We watched from the bar as they danced, knowing what was coming I couldn't help myself, I had to be near her. I slipped in behind her, her friends unaware that I was even there. I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close so that she could feel me, and how my body reacted to her still. Something made her stop moving, her head went down, and part of me wanted to rejoice because she knew I had her, I wanted to celebrate that she knew she couldn't leave me. But Spence's plan was just too good, so before she could turn to see me, to look right at me, I slipped away.

They ate down, we watched and then Spence and his boys went in for the kill. The look on the blonde's face was great. The tinge of bitchiness turned me on. They got up to leave and Spence grabbed her arm. Part of me wanted to hurt him for touching what was mine. Bella ripped her arm away, she seemed angry and I felt myself grow more turned on. This was not my girl, this girl was going to try and stand her ground to Spence. He grabbed her again, and again she stood up to him. Suddenly she was tough huh? Well we will just see about that. I liked that she had this attitude; it was going to be more fun to work with than her constant "I'm sorry. Please stop." I began to approach the group. And as I did the short one who looked like some kind of fairy said something to the blonde. Suddenly they were going to stand with her against the bad men. Ha! Where was her precious Edward now? Where were all three of them? Obviously they didn't care to escort them properly, so easy. They both made it so easy for me to take back my wife. I came closer and then the blonde spoke directly to me.

"Back off ass jack!" I wanted to laugh. So tough, probably been encouraged by that gorilla to be "a strong woman", not this time sweet heart. No one seemed to notice the scene that was forming in the room, which worked for me. Bella was focused solely on Spence, and the blonde was not going to stop me from getting what I wanted. I continued toward Bella, she must have sensed something because she put an arm up to stop the blonde.

"Rose, no! I won't let you get hurt not for me." She said it without looking at me, and when she was done she turned in my direction. She knew I was here, she was ready for me. She was ready to go with me, especially since she had stopped the blonde from interfering.

"Babe. What are you doing here? And why are you dressed like a tramp? I mean really who were you looking to pick up in that? Geez Bella, now that you had your fun let's go. It is time to go home." I took her arm, she didn't resist and I began to start to walk away, expecting her to follow. This was far easier than I had thought. Spence was smiling, like he had just won some major fight. All he did was piss off a couple of chicks. I was the one who had victory in his grasp.

"No!" She yelled and wrenched her arm away.

"What did you just say?" Was all I had, as I stopped in my tracks and turned around to look at her. People were watching us now. There was a small crowd forming, out of the corner of my eye I saw the three lost boys enter the room, and maybe a bouncer or two right behind them. "Are you delusional Bella?" I reached to her arm again.

"I said no Brian. I am not going anywhere with you. I'm done with this. Stay away from me and my family!" She sounded like she believe that she was going to will me away with her words. Part of me wanted to laugh. But I felt something in me snap, much like many times in the past.

"Bitch, I said it is time to go now!" I grabbed the back of her neck and started to lead her forward. She swatted my arm and refused to walk. "I will carry your ugly ass out of here, is that what you want?" I was yelling, demanding that I have what was mine. She was not going to refuse me. I wouldn't allow it.

"No!" She stood her ground. Part of me wanted to be proud of her, a larger part of me wanted to punch her in the jaw. The larger part won. I pulled back to swing. She closed her eyes preparing for the contact. She was still going to stand her ground, and take the punch. Before I made contact something that felt like stone hit my fist.

* * *

iwannabegilmore thank you for your comments, they mean a lot.

Of course I want Edward and the guys to protect Bella as well as Rose and Alice, but I felt that Bella needs to learn that she is stronger that she realizes. She needed to finally be able to say that enough is enough and she would not take it any more. Tell me what you think of it.


	20. Chapter 20

***EPOV***

I felt a sound tear from my throat that could have passed for a growl as I stepped in front of Bella. Emmett stepped with me, and put his hand up to catch the fist of Bella's ex who was about to punch her. He hadn't expected it. That was why we had hung back and away.

I had told Emmett about seeing the blue jeep all day, and when he pulled out on to the road and one followed us we knew it was him. I didn't want to make Bella nervous, not that she wasn't already, but I didn't want to make it worse.

Emmett's hand closed around his fist and he turned his arm so that he had turned this guy completely around. Two bouncers were there to grab him up and escort him out. Someone pointed out the other three guys and said they had been with him. They were ushered out as well. There had been no true physical violence, but I was afraid that Bella was upset by it all. I myself was enraged that he had touched her that he felt he could talk to her like that. My whole being wanted to go after them and to=finish things outside. Emmett put a hand on my shoulder. And then he said something that snapped me out of my rage induced haze.

"Edward, remember who you are, bro. It's over, James and the guys are calling the cops. He violated the restraining order; he's not going outside man he's going to a jail cell. The DJ saw the whole thing go down, and the guys saw him grab her. It's done." I looked me in the eye and was holding me by the shoulder to make sure I paid attention to him. Emmett spent most of his time being a goof ball, which meant when he said something serious, he said it with profound understanding and clarity. I looked at him and nodded.

"Okay. I'm okay. I just. I just never thought he would actually come after her like that." I shook my head. Jasper moved the girls back to the couch to make sure they were okay. One of the other bouncers was getting a statement for the police and then going to see what other people had to say.

"Dude, he did much worse to her in the past. Rose told me about the bruises and scars. Bella is tougher than you are giving her credit for. That girl has dealt with a lot more than you or I will ever understand. This might not be over with him and she might definitely need us for back up but what I saw tonight of Bella is a woman who is not going to be pushed around anymore. So my advice for the rest of tonight, and her life don't treat her like she is." He clapped my shoulder one more time then when over to where Rose was and kissed the top of her head. "How's my fierce woman doin'? Um also where did you get 'ass jack' from? Babe we really need to work on your 'I'm-gonna-kick-your-ass' phrases." He put his arm around her and she leaned against him, then his free hand went to her stomach. I slapped my forehead.

"Idiot!" What the hell, I should have stayed with them.

***BPOV***

Edward was beating himself up for the whole thing. I was shaking a bit, but all that kept going through my mind was how I had stood up to him and the best he could do in regards to it was to try and punch me. I looked at the five of them standing around me and giving their version of the story. Edward and Emmett were informing the bouncers of all the information they had, including the restraining order. Jasper handed me a glass, I looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"It will help calm your nerves." Jasper said to me. Edward looked over at me and gave me a questioning glance. I didn't know what Jasper was giving me but I figured he was probably right.

"Thanks, I think." I replied taking a sip of the liquid. It was enough to make me pucker my face and shake my head. "Oh my goodness Jasper, what the hell is this?" I asked feeling it burn as it slid down my throat.

"Took your mind off of things for a moment didn't it." He chuckled. Edward sat down next to me, he placed his head so that he was looking over my shoulder at Jasper. I leaned my head against him. I let out a sigh and wished that we were anywhere but here. Alice leaned up against Jasper and Rose looped her arm in Emmett's. I felt right at home. Deep down I knew if I had never left, if I had stayed this would have been my life. I would have been with Edward throughout college, we probably would have been engaged by graduation, and married after he finished med school. However that isn't how it all worked out.

As I mentally kicked myself for allowing myself to end up in the situations I always do. Edward felt me sigh against him, and kissed my cheek. "Bella, why don't we get you out of here?"He asked, I could tell he was worried about me, and probably wanted to make sure I was okay. I sighed again. I wasn't ready for the night to be over just yet. I hated that Brian had ruined it.

"You own me a dance." I said it without much thought, the words just came out. I wanted to slap my forehead for saying it. They probably all wanted to get out of here because of me, and I was requesting a dance instead. I looked up at Emmett, who was holding Rose close and swaying with her to the music that was pulsing through the speakers all around us. He winked at me.

"What?" Was all Edward could come up with. I shrugged my shoulders and prepared to have to leave much like he was trying to tell me we needed to. Again, my sera gate big brother stepped in to save me.

"Edward, we have kind of neglected the ladies all night. I have seen more guys try to dance with my wife then the number of times I have actually gotten to do so myself. I am getting a dance with her before we leave here. I'd get her drunk and take advantage of her if she wasn't already carrying my child, hey I can try for the taking advantage part at least. That douche isn't coming back in here. And if he shows up around Bella again we will handle him. That or Charlie will shoot him. Either way I have plans for the next song dude." And with that said Emmett lead Rose out onto the dance floor and away from us.

Edward looked at Jasper for help, but Alice was whispering something in his ear. He cocked an eyebrow and grinned. "Sorry man, Alice has threatened me with physical harm if I don't follow Emmett's lead on this one. There might have been the promise of something else if I did follow him, and I am going to choose the latter of the two." He winked as he stood and lead Alice out toward Emmett and Rose.

That left us, and an awkward silence. He was mad at me, or mad at himself. I couldn't tell which, but I could see it in his eyes. "I'm sorry I caused all of this." I said hanging my head. I felt like I was apologizing for all the things that Brian had done to me over the years. I felt like I was right back in those moments. Not wanting him to hit me so I apologized and hoped that he would be merciful. I could feel the tears starting to sting my eyes. I couldn't look up, especially once they began to fall.

"Come with me." Edward said holding his hand out. I felt like such an ass. I can't believe I just cried over this. Was it that I didn't want him mad at me like Brian always was, or was it that I didn't want to go back to how things had been before? Edward's hand was still there in front of me while I sat there like a dumb ass. I'm not sure exactly how long we were like this but after what felt like hours he grabbed my hand and pulled me to a standing position.

"Come on. We need to get some air, or something." Edward sounded frustrated and still angry. His voice had an edge to it that I didn't want to make worse. I took his hand and stood. I still wouldn't look at him directly. I felt like the puppy that gets kicked and comes back with its tail between its legs. I followed him up a set of stairs to what seemed like a more private part of the room. There was a bar up here, and off to the left lead to another section of the club. I had no clue where we were going but I followed Edward. He was hold my hand a little tighter and slowed his pace to avoid losing me in the crow up here.

When we made it through to the other room I found that we were in a more private area. There were couples sitting close together at little tables. It was quieter in here which was hard to believe since just through the doorway the music had been pumping off the walls. Edward lead me to a back corner table. We sat in silence. I kept trying to think of what I should say to make him not be mad at me anymore. I had so many thoughts just rushing at me and I couldn't get a grasp on any of them.

"Bella," he said in almost a whisper, "I am so sorry that this happened tonight." My brain couldn't wrap around my own thoughts let alone register what he was saying to me. I blinked and could feel more tears. A waitress came over wearing the most revealing outfit, I felt like I wanted to be sick with the way she was batting her eyes at Edward both as she approached and as she spoke solely to him.

"Hi, I'm Jessica can I get you anything tonight?" Her voice was sticky sweet and I felt my blood begin to boil with jealousy. Of all the times girls flirted with Brian in front of me I had never felt like this, only with Edward.

"No we're all set for now thank you." Edward said not even looking up at her. But she didn't relent.

"Well handsome, if you need anything, anything at all just page me with this and I will be here quicker than you can say sex on the beach." She handed him the small pager and winked.

"Thanks, but I don't think we will need it." He said trying to dismiss her yet again.

"You know what I think I will have a vodka tonic." I said with an edge to my tone. Edward raised an eyebrow at me. The waitress gave me a look of distain and walked away. As she headed toward the bar she sashayed her hips. Edward was the only male in the room not looking at her.

It didn't take her long to return and she placed the drink on the table with a Trinity napkin, she pretended to spill a little on the table and placed another napkin in front of Edward. It was my turn to cock an eyebrow, he looked at the napkin and then handed it to me.

_I get off at 2am…call me and I can serve you more than a drink…_

_206-349-6671 xoxo_

I crumpled it and tossed it on the ground. Edward chuckled and I took a long drink from the glass in front of me.

"Now now, don't go crazy with that please." Edward said as he took the glass from me. He took a long swig of it and then set it between us. I caught Jessica looking in our direction and I felt a growl rip from my throat. Edward placed his hand on my face and turned my head to face him and leaned into whisper in my ear.

"Clearly you can't be around that waitress so we better find a different place to talk." Edward said into my ear. I growled again as I caught her out of the corner of my eye coming by the table again. "Quit that, because I'm finding this side of you far too tempting." He said against my skin. He kisses a sensitive spot and his breath was hot against it then. He left cash for the drink on the table and picked up the glass and used his free hand to lead me out to a different location. Going back in through the Blue room we could see the others dancing and having a good time. Edward pulled me close to him as he lead me toward the stairs and down to a dark corner of the room where there weren't as many people.

When we reached the slightly excluded spot he positioned me so that I was standing with my back to the corner of the wall and he set the drink down on a tall table next to us and placed both hands on the wall trapping me in the corner.

"What the hell were you thinking tonight?" He roared at me with the same growl I had in regards to the waitress upstairs. His eyes flashed something that was not complete anger any more. And with the aid of my new found courage in regards to Brian, the jealousy with the waitress, and the vodka coursing through me I gave no thought to what I did next.

***EPOV***

I had to get her somewhere, where we could be alone. But there seemed to be no place. The waitress didn't want to get us drinks, she wanted to get into my pants. There was no way I was taking Bella into the VIP room so I dragged her back into the Blue Room and to a secluded corner spot. I took a second long swig from the vodka tonic that she had ordered and turned to her. My brain wanted to yell at her for the danger she placed herself in, the rest of me wanted to pin her against the wall and find a way to mark her as my feisty woman who no other man could have.

"What the hell were you thinking tonight?" I growled at her. My fear for her safety began to slightly override my need to just take her on the spot. She took a moment before she answered me, looking me straight in the eye. I expected her to give me some kind of Bella like answer. Instead she did something I didn't expect from her.

***BPOV***

I stared at him, I looked at his face and then solely at his lips. Something in me snapped and everything else took over in that moment. He was leaning in to keep our conversation away from prying ears. I placed a hand on the back of his neck and pulled him forward and crushed myself against him.

* * *

Thanks for the reviews...please keep them coming. It means a lot. :)

SM owns Twilight and the characters, I own my laptop and the story in my head. The difference, she makes millions and I make nothing off these ramblings.


End file.
